Kakashi's Mid Life Crisis
by Mysteria Pearl
Summary: What happens when Kakashi begins to think that he truly is getting old? Not that his team is really helping. Can he handle a fairly strange and high stress mission? He better, or a former female Anbu may never speak again. . . very cute Kakashi x OC
1. Chapter 1

MID LIFE CRISIS- Kakashi x OC by Mysteria Pearl

Hey, hey, hey! It's MP again! You know the old guy in his eighties down the street that bought a motorcycle? Remember that older lady who bough a red sports car for she and her cat? Know that old fuddy-duddy who suddenly became well. . . Ripped? These things are all synonymous to mid life crisis. What happens when Kakashi begins to think that he truly is getting old? Not that his team is helping. Can he handle a fairly high-awkwardness and stress mission? He better, or a former female Anbu may never speak again. . . Kakashi x OC

Read on and please review when you're finished!

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It all started when the Lady Tsunade called Kakashi into her office. The blonde woman had told him that she wanted him to do "a simple task" for her.

'Simple task, my mask.' Kakashi thought as he looked up at the gate outside of the hospital.

"_You mission is very important." _Tsunade had said. Kakashi raised an eye from his "Icha Icha" book to the front door. A med-nin with a clipboard came out the door bringing a limping girl with her.

"_There is an Anbu Black Op returning to the village." _Kakashi watched the girl smile timidly at the nurse as she turned back to the building and waved to someone in a higher floor's window.

"_In the past she has proved to be one of our best Anbu and it hurts us to let her go," _The girl turned back to the nurse and followed her farther down the walk.

"_But just recently, she has been mortally wounded and can no longer be a regular operative." _Kakashi had inquired why he was needed.

"_You were an Anbu, but you retired out of it at good age. This girl, however. . . "_ the Hokage had trailed off,

"_This girl's life was completely committed to being an Anbu. But on her last mission, she was captured and brutalized. When her teammates had found her, she was almost unidentifiable. Her career as an Anbu has been cut short at barely twenty-three. Kakashi,"_ Kakashi had looked up at Hokage's stern face

"_She has been in the hospital for over a year now, and they've finally decided to release her. The only problem is, the ward fears that she could be. . ."_

Kakashi watched as the girl stopped to pick a stray flower with great difficulty from the edge of the walk.

"_They believe that she is. . . Worse then expected. Not only was she physically brutalized, but they believe that she was also mentally tortured. But, these are only speculations since. . ." _

Kakashi bowed as the nurse greeted him and bowed again to the girl. The girl struggled to bow as best she could and the nurse handed Kakashi the clipboard and instructed him to follow the directions in making sure the patient was alright. The nurse bowed to the girl and hurried back inside. The girl watched the nurse and then took a moment to gaze up at the building.

"_Since she hasn't spoken since her team dissapeared and we found her."_

Kakashi read over the clipboard,

"So you're. . . Cherry Kawaii." _Strange name for a Kouinichi to have here in Konoha, but whatever. _The girl nodded and her long pigtails bounced up and down. Kakashi scratched his head _one way conversations are hard_ he thought,

"I'm Kakashi Hatake. I'll be taking care of you for awhile." The girl nodded again.

"I'm going to take you back with me to meet my team. Sound good?" Cherry nodded again and Kakashi sighed to himself. He had a feeling he was biting off more than he could chew with this mission.

Naruto looked around excitedly,

"Man! This place is AWESOME!" He shouted louder than necessary as he jumped from one thing to another. Somehow, Kakashi had convinced Tsunade to give him a larger apartment that Kakashi now called the "Team base" although none of the three Chunin had ever seen inside it.

Sakura sat down on the floor. It seemed that Kakashi wasn't exactly the interior designer type. She looked around the bare apartment. The only furniture that was in there was the same as his old apartment, hence the emptiness. Against one wall was a locked bookcase that was filled with, wouldn't you guess, Icha Icha books. She could see his bed through another open door. The kitchenette was bare too, Naruto had found as he opened the fridge. All that was in there were water and some rice.

Sasuke brooded (as usual) out on the balcony and everything was pretty much quiet. . .except Naruto shouting how great something was every few seconds. He zoomed about the spacious apartment, arms and legs flailing as Sasuke and Sakura ignored him.

Suddenly, the front door opened and Kakashi walked in, followed by a timid redhead.

Naruto skidded to a stop and everything was silent as Naruto's eyes grew larger and larger by the second.

"OH MY GOSH, MASTER KAKASHI! YOU FINALLY GOT A GIRLFRIEND!" With hyper speed, Naruto leaped over to her and circled her.

"N-Naruto--" Kakashi began, putting his finger up in the air in protest,

"I MEAN, LIKE YOU'VE BEEN SINGLE FOR, LIKE, EVER!"

"Naruto-- she's not--" Kakashi was cut off again, left with his finger in the air and a vein beginning to show on the tiny bit of space on his face that wasn't covered. Naruto ran around them in circles, arms and legs flailing about again as he shouted,

"SHE'S SO CUTE! I'M SO PROUD, KAKSHI SENSEI!!!" he paused to give Kakashi a 'thumbs up'

"You sly dog, Kakashi! You got a pretty--"

"NARUTO!" Kakashi shouted, completely fuming. Naruto froze and Sakura and Sasuke even stared wide-eyed. Kakashi had never shouted before, and even his visible bedroom eye showed white around the gray iris. Kakashi stood there for a moment, actually steaming before he continued in a forced tone,

"Naruto," he said with clenched teeth,

"This is Kawaii-chan. Tsunade ordered me to look after her for a little while. Kapeesh?" Naruto nodded his head vigorously and Sasuke and Sakura came up behind him.

"Now, Apologize." Naruto bowed,

"Sorry, Lady." Cherry smiled and bowed back. Kakashi turned to Sasuke and Sakura,

"Kawaii-chan, the is Sakura Haruno and Sasuke Uchia" Sasuke grunted in acknowledgement as he bowed. Cherry struggled to bow in return

"Nice to meet you," Sakura said as she bowed. Once again, Cherry made a quick, shaking bow.

"And this" Kakashi said, motioning to Naruto,

"Is the reason for the bags under my eyes, Naruto Uzumaki." Naruto raised a peace sign,

"Yo, Lady." Kakashi's brows furrowed,

"Her name's not, 'Lady,' Naruto, now show some respect." Naruto laughed embarrassedly,

"Sorry, Kawaii-chan. Say, so what does Master Kakashi have to watch you for? And where are you from? And what are you--mmph!" Kakashi covered Naruto's large mouth with his gloved hand and smiled (for all anyone could tell) at the girl,

"My apologies, Kawaii-chan. May I have word with my team?" Cherry nodded and ventured out to the balcony, closing the sliding door behind her.

Kakashi turned his team,

"That was uncalled for, Naruto," Kakashi said, crossing his arms.

"What?!" Naruto squeaked,

"I was just making pleasant conversation, Kakashi! Geeze, EVERYTHING I do is wrong! How Come I always get scolded while Sasuke was even ruder to her than--"

"That's enough, Naruto." Kakashi said sternly. He leaned back up against a white wall,

"That girl is unstable physically and probably mentally. It's our job to make sure that she stays safe and comfortable while she's adjusting to regular life."

Sakura raised her hand,

"What is she adjusting from, Master Kakashi?" Kakashi sighed,

"She was beaten badly by an enemy on an Anbu mission. From what I read of her statistics, it's hard for her to even stand for long at this point. My job, for the time being is to help rehabilitate her. She's been an Anbu since she was younger than you, so it's not going to be easy to get her to fit in. Sakura," he said as he turned to the pink haired Kouinichi,

"Can I trust you to take care of all of her _personal_ and _female _needs?" Sakura smiled,

"Yes, Master Kakashi."

Kakashi turned to Sasuke and Naruto,

"You two need to help me make her more comfortable around different kinds of people. Sasuke, try and be at least a little nice," Sasuke grunted.

"And Naruto-- Just keep being Naruto, but try and be less. . . Intimidating." Naruto grinned,

"You got it, Master Kakashi!"

Kakashi stuck his hands in his pockets,

"Can I trust you three to do one more thing for me?" He asked seriously. Sasuke, Naruto and Sakura listened intently and expectantly as Kakashi paused.

"Can you get some groceries, I'm totally out and it's rude to serve a guest water and rice." He said happily, completely shattering the mood. Sakura, Sasuke and Naruto all face faulted. Sakura laughed,

"Sure, Kakashi-sensei. Anything in particular?" she asked. Kakashi thought for a moment,

"Well, whatever normal people eat, I guess." Sakura's face fell. Kakashi couldn't make it any more obvious that he was a bachelor.

"Okay, Kakashi-sensei C'mon, guys," she said as she dragged Naruto and motioned for Sasuke to follow her out the door,

"We'll be back in. . . mmm. . . About two or three hours, okay?" Sakura called as she shoved Naruto out of the apartment.

"Alright. Thanks again, Sakura." Kakashi said as he raised his hand good-bye.

Kakashi turned to the balcony. He could see the redhead through the windows. He did a double take when he realized that birds surrounded her on all sides. On the rail, on her head, her arms, her fingers, her shoulders, birds were perched everywhere around her. Kakashi opened the sliding door, ever so slowly, terrified that the birds would see his hair with a "rooms for rent" sign sticking out.

"Kawaii-chan?" The girl turn and the birds scattered everywhere. Kakashi sighed with great relief as the birds flew off into the trees of Konoha.

"Would you like to go for a short walk?" Kakashi asked. Cherry smiled and nodded. And Kakashi led her down to the street.

It was mid evening and the air was crisp and cool. The sky was striped with pink and purple and birds' songs filled the fresh air. They walked along in silence for a while. Kakashi noticed that while she was limping, she somehow managed to keep pace with him.

"It's really beautiful out here." Cherry nodded. Kakashi sighed as he dug his hands in his pockets and stopped next to a large black stone. She stood beside him. Kakashi ran his gloved hand through his hair,

"Kawaii-chan, I just wanted to let you know that you can trust me." He motioned to the large black rock,

"I was an Anbu, too. I've seen many bad things. I know that you probably don't want to hear of it. . . But. . ." he trailed off. He noticed that Cherry stared at her feet rather sadly,

"There's really no way around it. . ." Kakashi said as he patted the rock,

"I've seen some of my closest friends die. You probably have, too. But the thing is. . ." He trailed off as he watched the lady's shoulders began to shake as her breath became shaky. Kakashi gently lifted her chin with his forefinger. He looked closely at her face for the first time. Big red-brown eyes surrounded by long eyelashes threatened to drop tears at any moment. Cherry's red lips quivered. Her pale white skin was swiveled and swirled with scars. The scars ran up and down, side to side. The thin pink lines were pure reminders of whatever had happened.

"No matter how much people tell you to forget what happened on the battleground. . . It stays with you. . ." Cherry raised her hands to her face as the tears kept coming,

"And it feels like it will never leave you. . . But. . . You need to find something to fill that hole in your heart. . . And. . ." he rested a gloved hand on her shoulder,

". . . I'm sorry, but that's the only advice I can give you. I don't know what exactly happened, or what you've been through, but just remember, you have a friend."

Suddenly, Kakashi found two arms wrapped snugly around his torso. Cherry silently wept into his green vest. Kakashi froze as the girl shook against his chest. Ever so gently, he raised his arms and lightly wrapped them around her, light enough not to hurt her and just loose enough that she could pull away if she wanted,

"I'm going to be here for you, come what will." Kakashi said as he gently ran a hand through one of her long pigtails.

"Shall we head back to Team 7's Headquarters?" Kakashi asked after Cherry had quieted and her tears had stopped. Cherry slowly pulled away and Kakashi took her hand,

"Come on. I'll be with you all the way." Cherry nodded and smiled the biggest smile she could muster as Kakashi led them back home.

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Thank you so very much for reading! I hope you've enjoyed it so far. You may be wondering what this has to do with a mid-life crisis, but you'll understand when you read the next chapter. This is my first story that I'm not posting in one-shot form, so please bear with me. But don't worry, it's not going to be one of those incredibly long stories that are full of nonsense that isn't needed. I feel it's important to get down to the point quickly so that readers don't get bored and go do something else instead. Well, I hope you liked it!

Hope to hear from you soon. (In other words PLEASE REVIEW!!!)

Mysteria Pearl


	2. Chapter 2

Hey! It's Mysteria Pearl (again) with chapter 2! If you're still reading this, PLEASE REVIEW! Thank you J By the way, I know Sasuke goes all "grrr" and I've read all the manga (Including the time-jump) that are currently out in Japan, but I just wanted them all to be together and to be Chunin for the sake of the storyline, okeydokey?

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When Kakashi and Cherry returned to the apartment, they found Sakura filling the once bare cabinets with food, Sasuke having a silent conversation with a squirrel out on the balcony and Naruto. . . Well. . . Being Naruto. And, at that moment, being Naruto meant trying to pry open Kakashi's bookshelf of Icha Icha books. Sakura looked up from the paper grocery bags,

"Hi, Kakashi-sensei, Kawaii-chan! I was wondering when you'd come back! We bought a lot of really simple food to make." Kakashi looked at her blankly.

"You do know how to make beef, right?" Sakura asked. Kakashi said nothing.

"Pork?" Silence

"Chicken?"

"…"

"SOUP!?" Kakashi shrugged and smiled weakly (for all Sakura could tell, he could have been grimacing)

"ANYTHING!?" Sakura shouted, a vein popping out of her large forehead. Naruto looked up from his crowbar,

"Yo, Master Kakashi! Didn't know you got here! Yo, Kawaii-chan!" Cherry raised her hand in a hello as Sakura continued to scream at Kakashi,

"You're kidding me! You unmarried and almost thirty! You can't even cook for yourself!? You're a full-blown Jounin! Come ON!" Sasuke deserted his squirrel friend to put a hand over Sakura's mouth,

"Stop it, Sakura. You're being annoying."

"Humph!" Sakura said, ripping Sasuke's hand from her mouth. No way was an emo-boy gonna shush her when she was on a roll!

"I bet even Naruto or Sasuke-kun knows how to cook!" She said, turning to them. The two boys shrugged,

"We're orphans. Never learned" Sasuke said simply as he went back to talk to the squirrel who he had dubbed "Mr. Nutty" sometime during the conversation. Sakura huffed,

"Seriously, a guy as old as you not being able to cook!" Kakashi cringed. He hated the word "old" Sakura turned to Cherry,

"How about you, Kawaii-chan? Do you know how to cook?" Cherry peeked out from where she was hiding behind Kakashi and nodded. Sakura grinned triumphantly,

"That's great! Well, of course you know how! After all, you were probably the only Kouinichi on your team, right?" Cherry nodded again.

"Hey, do you know how to cook beef?" she nodded again.

"Do you want to help me make dinner for these three _pathetic_ guys, Kawaii-chan?" Cherry nodded her head vigorously. Sakura grinned and grabbed Cherry's hand to lead her to the kitchen. At the door, Sakura turned to Kakashi and mouthed the words "It worked!" at him as she put her thumb up in the air. Kakashi nodded warily and sat down on the floor at the low table. He could hear pots and pans, that he didn't rightfully know he had, banging and Sakura making in pleasant "yes or no" questions. If Kakashi didn't know better, it seemed that Sakura had talked to that kind of person before, maybe an imaginary friend or something (Or maybe it came naturally after years of dealing with the non-talkative nin such as, gee, I don't know, Sasuke, Neji, Gaara, Shikamaru, Shino, you get the picture). Kakashi shrugged it off as he slumped over onto the table and he turned to his thoughts.

'. . . unmarried. . .' How many times had he been reminded of that? Every day. Every minute. Every moment; it was constant. He had never had a girlfriend or anything close to one.

'. . . almost thirty. . .' Kakashi cringed from where he was slumped over on the table. He remembered looking up at the unmarried older Jounin with disdain when he was around five or six years old. He remembered telling himself that he 'would never ever, ever, ever, ever, ever' grow up to be like that. 'Lonely and alone.' And there he was. 'Thirty and pathetic.'

'. . . a guy as old as you. . .' It was strange that only a few harmless words from a mere fourteen-year-old Kouinichi could make a full-grown Jounin man want to cry. He wondered what it would be like to just look up and see the one who was for you. Just to be able to see someone who could love him would make him the most thankful man in all of the villages.

Eventually, he became aware of a warm hand gently caressing his back. He raised his head and found Cherry smiling down at him sympathetically. Kakashi cleared his throat,

"Sorry. . . I was feeling. . . A little tired. That's all." Cherry nodded and set a plate of food down before him. She set four more like it around the table and sat down next to Kakashi. Her presence, although silent, was calming. It was like she was listening to his unspoken words and was speaking silent words of comfort to him. Sakura, Sasuke and Naruto sat down around the small square table and they began to eat. Sakura busied herself in convincing Sasuke to eat something odd she had "prepared herself" while Sasuke himself wondered if it was some sort of sleeping poison. Naruto, meanwhile was scarfing down the food like a madman. Kakashi sat and watched the activity of the adolescents for a while until he felt a soft tug on his sleeve. He glanced down at Cherry who motioned to the plate in front of him. Kakashi laughed nervously,

"I don't remove my mask in front of them." Kakashi said simply as he picked up his plate,

"Please excuse me." He said smiling. His eye crinkled when he smiled, Cherry noticed. Kakashi excused himself to his room and seconds later he emerged with a spot-free plate and sat back down at the table. Sasuke gave him a strange look while Sakura raised an eyebrow.

"Way-- Wasper Wawashi--"

"Don't speak with your mouth full of food, Naruto." Kakashi scolded. Naruto swallowed and breathed heavily,

"Hey, Master Kakashi! Doesn't eating so quickly give you like indigestion or something? Heartburn?" Kakashi shook his head and Cherry smiled and she daintily continued to eat.

"Sakura, that was very good." Kakashi said after a moment of silence. Sakura swallowed the beef she was eating,

"Don't thank me; Kawaii-chan made it! I just helped with the sauce." Kakashi looked over at Cherry, who was practically glowing. He couldn't quite tell if it was embarrassment or just being humble, but he could see her ears and cheeks redden as he patted the top of her head,

"In that case, it was spectacular." He said. Cherry smiled down at her lap, twiddled her thumbs, and nodded.

"Ahhh, that was great, Sakura-chan, Kawaii-chan!" Naruto shouted the second he was done,

"Hey, you got any desert for us?!" A vein popped out of Sakura's head,

"What am I, your mother?!" Naruto's face fell and Sakura realized what she had said,

"Gomensai, Naruto." Sakura said quietly. Kakashi stood,

"Well, it's almost ten. Sakura, do you have any sleeping clothes or regular clothes that Kawaii-chan could borrow?" Sakura looked up at him,

"I don't know Kakashi-sensei. I think she'd fit better into my mom's clothes." Kakashi shrugged,

"Would you mind going to get some. Oh, and get whatever you're going to need for tonight, you three are going to stay here until this mission is over." Sasuke slumped further down in his chair, receiving another glare from Kakashi. Sasuke sighed and sat back up,

"Okay. I'll be right back, you coming, lame-brain?" he asked Naruto. Naruto jumped up and followed Sakura and Sasuke out the door, shouting all the way about "I'm no lame-brain!!" and such.

Kakashi turned to Cherry,

"I'm going to go take a shower. Will you be okay by yourself for a few minutes?" Cherry nodded and Kakashi went off into his room.

Cherry stood in the middle of the room for a moment, taking in her surroundings and then silently went to the balcony. She sat down and gazed off into the night sky. The stars beckoned for her and the cool air relaxed her. She sighed to herself as she closed her eyes and breathed deeply.

Across the village, Sakura ran through the front door of her home,

"Mom!? Are you home!? It's Sakura! Where are you!?" Mrs. Haruno walked out of the kitchen, wiping her hands on a dishcloth,

"Hi Sakura. What do you need?" Sakura plopped down on a chair,

"Well, Master Kakashi just gave us this really weird mission. We're supposed to take care of this girl and I need some clothes for her." Mrs. Haruno smiled and headed back to the kitchen,

"Oh, well, you can always let her use some of her clothes." Mrs. Haruno said over her shoulder. Sakura scratched her head,

"Um. . .mom?"

"Yeah?"

"She's about. . . Uh, twenty-four. I don't really think she'll _fit_ into any of my clothes. Could she possibly borrow some of yours?" Sakura's mother walked back into the room,

"Well. . . She won't ruin them, will she? She's not a delinquent or something, is she?" Sakura laughed,

"No, she was a great former Anbu. Kakashi-sensei's just supposed to rehabilitate her or something. I'm sure I can convince him to let us go shopping or something tomorrow, so I'll just need a pair of sleep clothes and a clean pair of clothes for her."

"Okay," her mother said as she headed for the master bedroom,

"Just get your things together and I'll grab some clothes."

"Oh! And mom!?" Sakura called

"Yeah?" her mother's reply came

"Don't pack anything too. . . Ugly. . . or old. We're trying to build her self confidence, not totally demolish it."

"Okay, hon!"

Naruto looked around. He couldn't find his sleep hat anywhere. His little apartment (Apartment sounded more sophisticated then "dorm," he thought) was cluttered with the usual. Old milk cartons, dirty dishes, bed linens and of course, rancid laundry. About ten minutes spent digging through the landfill Naruto called "home," he finally found the walrus hat, his coin pouch, his toothbrush, some pajamas, and a clean pair of underpants.

Sakura knocked once on the door and then let herself in. Sasuke was already there with a small black backpack. (Note: no details about his dorm-room are allowed to be mentioned, or I might suffer a fate worse then death-- Sasuke being all scary! EEP!) He sat in the corner doing nothing. 'He must always be so bored, I wonder what he thinks about all the time.' Sakura thought in passing as she set down the pink and red bag she had brought. The red bag held Sakura's essentials and the pink held what Cherry would use. Looking around the room, she could see Cherry's silhouette out on the balcony but Kakashi was nowhere in sight. She shrugged and sat down against the wall opposite of Sasuke and the two sat in awkward silence for a few moments until--

"HEY!!!" Naruto shouted as he busted through the door. Sakura nearly jumped and Sasuke just gained a look of extreme annoyance as Naruto gave them a peace sign,

"Sorry I'm so late, I couldn't find my sleep cap anywhere! Hey!!? Where's Master Kakashi!? And Where's Kawaii-chan!?" Sakura twitched,

"You are so dense, Naruto! Kawaii-chan is--" At that moment, Kakashi decided to poke his spiky head out of his room,

"Ah, Sakura, Sasuke, Naruto, you're back. And to think, I was actually enjoying the peace and quiet for once." He said sarcastically. Naruto scowled,

"Sasuke and Sakura started it." he said as he crossed his arms and pouted childishly. Sakura struck a fighting pose and her head began to. . . Um. . .expand and she was about to completely rip on Naruto when all four of them froze and looked up to the sliding door. It squeaked as it slid open. Cherry stood at the doorway for a moment and then stepped forward, allowing the sliding door to shut neatly behind her. She slowly limped over to where Sakura stood and moved Sakura's arm and straightened her hand. Sakura raised an eyebrow and couldn't figure out what the former Anbu was doing. Cherry leaned over and turned out Sakura's forward foot and straightened out her back foot, bent Sakura's knees and turned her waist to face Naruto.

Kakashi watched as Cherry perfected Sakura's pose. Sakura's face still looked perplexed after around thirty seconds. Kakashi smiled. Cherry was truly a great Anbu, she even knew what stance was firmest for novice Kouinichi. With gentle touches, Cherry moved the younger girl's limbs until Sakura stood in a perfect stance. Kakashi smiled under his mask as Cherry stood back and smiled sheepishly.

Then Sakura understood. Cherry was fixing her fighting stance for her. Obviously Kakashi understood at the same moment, because the two began to laugh lightheartedly at the same time. Naruto stood in a daze; perplexed while Sasuke just brooded with his arms crossed.

A grin suddenly on Naruto's face,

"THAT IS SOOOOOOO AWESOME, KAWAII-_SENSEI_!!" Cherry blushed.

Sakura nodded as she released the stance,  
"I agree. That was wonderful, Kawaii-sensei." Sakura said as she bowed. Cherry blushed further.

Clap. Clap. Clap. Clap. Clap. Clap. Cherry looked up and found even Sasuke-the-Irritable clapping with a light smirk on his face. Kakashi patted her shoulder and glanced up at the clock,

"Sakura, get Kawaii-chan and yourself ready for bed. You can use my room and bathroom. We'll just get ready in here and in the spare bathroom."

Sakura grinned,

"Yes, Kakashi-sensei!" she said as she grabbed the two bags in one hand and Cherry's hand in the other,

"Let's go, Kawaii-sensei."

Once Sakura had closed the door behind her, Kakashi turned to the two nin,

"Sasuke, that was actually polite of you to clap for her, and thanks for complimenting her, Naruto, that was nice." Kakashi said simply,

"Now, time to sleep. We can change--" and then he realized he had forgotten his bag in his room,

"Hold on, I'll be right back," he said as he walked down the hall toward the bedroom.

"Don't tell me you always wear that ridiculous hat to bed." Sasuke said as he pulled out a pair of plain black boxers and a black T-shirt. Naruto scowled,

"It's better then your wardrobe, Goth."

Kakashi raised his hand to the door to knock but paused when he heard Sakura's voice,

"Kakashi-sensei is kind of a dork, if you ask me, Kawaii-sensei. I mean, look at this place. There's like nothing here!" Kakashi smirked.

"I mean, he's like a grown up!" Kakashi rolled his eyes.

"Seriously, he's almost thirty, you know?" silence.

"He's pretty old. And he's a pretty pathetic bachelor. He doesn't even have a girlfriend." complete silence

"I think he's just turning into our Jiraiya, an single old guy who only reads Icha Icha books and. . . is just. . . I don't know-- old. Don't you agree?" Kakashi's heart sank. For some odd reason, he wished that Cherry was shaking her head and disagreeing with Sakura.

"Well--" Kakashi couldn't take it anymore. He knocked loudly on the door, interrupting Sakura,

"Come in!" Sakura called. Kakashi put on a smiling face (as far as anyone could tell) and opened the door,

"Pardon." he said as he waved a hand at Cherry, who at the moment sat on his bed,

"I just forgot my things." He grabbed his green bag from near the door and left.

Sakura turned back to unpacking the bag. She had noticed that while she had been talking, Cherry's eyes had darted to the door, as if she knew Kakashi was there, listening. At the time, Sakura just thought Cherry was a bit paranoid, but she realized she was much more honed and attentive then she first thought. Sakura changed into her pajamas, bright red with little pink blossoms on it and opened the pink bag,

"This is going to be your bag for the time being. I convinced my mom to let you borrow some of her clothes." Sakura pulled out a white lacey nightgown,

"Would you like some help getting it on?" Cherry nodded and Sakura helped her off with her clothes. As she helped pull the lacy nightgown over the lady's head, she couldn't help but notice how many scars Cherry had. Her body almost resembled a child's coloring book, lines going this way and that, criss-crossing one and other and never following an exact pattern . The pink lines swiveled all across the girl's body.

Sakura suddenly felt guilty. She felt guilty that she had ever been so vain as to go into a fit because of one small blemish, to go into tears when her mascara wasn't just right or when her hair got into her lip-gloss. She felt saddened at obsessing over frivolities such as wanting to be perfect, wanting to "as pretty as" or "better looking then" when this former Anbu had given such things up to serve her village. This lady had given her appearance-- perhaps even her sanity to protect those she cared about. Sakura absentmindedly grabbed a hairbrush out of the bag and untied the older woman's hair and began brushing it,

"You're really cool, Kawaii-sensei!" Sakura sat back and looked at her work. The sensei's hair fell down to around her knees, down around her shoulders flowed the long red-coloured tendrils.

"Hey, I just remembered." Sakura said, grinning,

"I bought some cocoa at the market, would you like to make some? I'm sure the guys want some too!" Cherry smiled and nodded.

Kakashi sat against the wall. With lightning speed, he had managed to get past Naruto, unlock the bookcase, get one of his new Icha Icha books, and relocked the case. He sat contentedly on the floor reading the little orange book and easily repelling Naruto against the wall as he attacked every few moments. Sakura's face fell as she saw Naruto's new neon orange sleeping pants and matching shirt with yellow swirls all over it. Sasuke was out on the balcony completely decked out in black and Kakashi was in dark blue pants and a tight blue tank.

"Hi, Kakashi-sensei."

Kakashi looked up from his book and was caught awestruck. Cherry looked so beautiful. The white lacey nightgown fit her perfectly and her red hair framed her pretty face. Her scarred hands fiddled with a piece of ribbon that was attached to the nightgown as she stared embarrassedly down at her bare feet.

"Oi, Sakura, Kawaii-chan. Everything going alright?" Sakura grinned,

"Yep. We were just going to go make some cocoa. Do you want some?" Kakashi grunted "Yes" and Naruto shot up from where he had lay crumpled against the wall,

"Ooh! Ooh! Me too! I want some, Sakura-chan!" Sakura grinned,

"Okay! I'll go ask Sasuke-kun if he wants some. Kawaii-sensei, would you mind going and start to boil some milk for me?" Cherry nodded and headed for the kitchen. Kakashi stood and quietly followed her.

When they reached the kitchen, Cherry opened the fridge and pulled out the milk. She lit the gas stove and poured the milk into a deep pan and put it on the stove.

"So. . ." Kakashi said quietly,

"Are you and Sakura getting along well?" Cherry nodded as she opened a drawer and pulled out a long wooden spoon. Kakashi laughed out loud,

"You already seem to know your way around the kitchen better than I do." Cherry looked up and found the masked man standing close to her. She accidentally dropped the spoon and it clattered loudly on the counter. Kakashi picked it up and held it out to her. Her soft, delicate hand brushed against his and she smiled up at him softly.

"Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura all seem to look up to you with very high respect and reverence." Kakashi said quietly. Cherry blushed and returned to stirring the milk so it would spoil.

"You do see that. . . Don't you?" Cherry blushed further and nodded slowly. Kakashi leaned against the counter next to the stove,

"They all show it in different ways. Sakura. . . Well . . She's rather open with her opinions. She enjoys being complimented and complimenting others. She also likes fighting Naruto." Cherry showed her teeth as she smiled (Kakashi figured that that was her equivalent to laughing).

"Sasuke. . . Well, he's the brooding type, if you haven't already guessed. He's always serious and doesn't get along very well with others. It's very rare for him to even applaud a sensei, it's a great honor, you know." Cherry smiled sheepishly again down at the almost boiling milk.

"And Naruto. . . Well, he's Konoha's number one hyperactive knuckleheaded ninja. But he can be pleasant if you get to know him. He may not show it, but he really does care for those around him. Some know him as the Nine-Tailed-Fox, but he's much more than that." Cherry nodded and turned the gas off the burner. She turned to a cupboard and opened it. The top shelf held all of the mugs. Kakashi laughed inwardly as the lady looked up at the shelves, perplexed. The top shelf against the ceiling and even at five foot four, she couldn't reach it, even if she tried.

And try she did. She reached up with all her might and could barely touch the shelf itself. Suddenly, she felt a warm sensation against her back. She looked up and found Kakashi standing with his chest against her back, smiling down at her; head and shoulders taller then her.

"Let me help you with that." Kakashi said. Cherry nodded and leaned her head against his chest and watched as Kakashi's long fingers gripped the mugs one by one.

As he set the last mug down on the counter, Sakura decided to grace the two adults with her "perfect" timing.

"Kawaii-sensei, how's the cocoa coming-- oh, hi, Kakashi-sensei!" Kakashi tore away from Cherry so fast that he almost felt dizzy. Cherry wore a blush as she busied herself with finding a spoon.

"Oi, Kawaii-sensei, do you know where I put the cocoa?" Sakura asked, totally oblivious. Kakashi cleared his throat as Cherry fetched the cocoa from another cupboard,

"I'm going to go. . . Make sure Naruto hasn't gotten into my books!" Kakashi said over-enthusiastically as he walked a bit too quickly out of the kitchenette.

"What's his problem?" Sakura asked, raising an eyebrow. Cherry shrugged.

"Old guys." Sakura scoffed as she continued stirring the cocoa into the milk.

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One of my friends told me that normal people don't make hot cocoa on the stove anymore, but I do. I think it tastes better then warming it in the microwave. Besides, I highly doubt that Kakashi has a microwave in his apartment.

Well? How was it? Did you like it? Even if you didn't, please review (But please no flame-ies, please!)

Thank you for your time!

Mysteria Pearl


	3. Chapter 3

Kakashi sat on floor. He had gone back to his Icha Icha book and, at the moment, was trying to ignore Naruto and Sasuke's bickering.

"Oi, Sasuke-kuuun, Naruto, Kakashi-sensei, hot chocolate's done!" Sakura sang as she waltzed into the sitting room carrying a tray with three mugs on it. Cherry followed and carried two cups. Sakura immediately skipped merrily over to Sasuke and handed him one. Sasuke grunted and Naruto promptly snatched the second. Cherry sat down next to Kakashi and handed him one. His long, steady fingers brushed against her thin pale ones and gently took the mug from her hand. Sakura, Naruto and Sasuke sat down around the table and suddenly, Sakura burst into a fit of giggles. Kakashi raised his visible eyebrow,

"Do you have something to share, Sakura?" Sakura stifled a guffaw,

"Look at what your mug says!" Kakashi glanced down at it. It read "Mamma's boy." Kakashi chucked to himself and couldn't help but notice Cherry smile dazzlingly at him. Sakura grinned,

"Kakashi, aren't you a bit old to be a Mamma's boy?!" Kakashi scowled and excused himself from the table to the balcony.

"What's his problem?" Naruto asked as he gulped down the cocoa.

"He's just in his mid-life-crisis, I guess." Sakura said as she shrugged and lifted her drink to her lips. Her hand, though, froze midway,

"Naruto! Look-- Haha! Look what your mug says!!" Naruto held up his mug at eye level and his face dropped,

"Foxy dude!?" Sakura burst out in giggles,

"And hey-- look what Sasuke's says!"

Cherry watched as Kakashi shut the sliding door to the balcony behind him. She could see his shadow lean against the rail. His hand ran through his spiky hair and he sighed.

"Isn't that right, Kawaii-sensei!!?" Cherry's eyes bolted from the door back to the Chunin's conversation. She hadn't been focusing on what they had been saying.

"You must be tired, ne?" Cherry shrugged as Sakura helped her up,

"I guess this means it's time for bed. See you guys in the morning; Bye Sasuke-kun, Naruto!" Sakura said happily as she took Cherry by the hand and brought her down the hall towards the Master bedroom.

"Yo, Master Kakashi!!" Kakashi looked up from where he was leaning against the rail. Naruto stood at the door, giving him a peace sign.

"What is it, Naruto?" Naruto scratched his head,

"Where do we sleep!?" Kakashi pushed past Naruto and pulled some spare blankets and pillows out of one of the hall closets,

"The floor."

Sakura sat down on the bed,

"Gosh, for an old guy-bachelor, you'd think he'd know how to change the sheets once in awhile." Sakura said and laughed. Cherry slid under the warm blankets and nestled down onto the pillow.

KNOCK-KNOCK

"Hai!?" Sakura called.

Kakashi opened the door,  
"Everything okay?"

Sakura grinned,  
"This room reeks of old guy, Kakashi-sensei."

Kakashi scowled and ignored Sakura's rude comment.  
"Is everything okay, _Kawaii-chan_?" Cherry smiled and nodded.

"Good. Sasuke, Naruto and I will be out in the sitting room if you need us." Kakashi shut off the light and gazed at the redhead once more before he backed out of the doorway. Cherry nodded and blushed after Kakashi had left. Sakura glanced up at Cherry as she slid under the covers,

"Is everything okay, you look a little red; do you have a fever or something?" Cherry shook her bed and sunk further into her bed.

"Well, okay. But wake me up if you need anything, okay?" Cherry nodded, turned over, and drifted off to sleep.

Kakashi looked down at the clipboard. So far, everything was under control. Cherry had been kept in a good mood, had been fed nourishingly, and best of all, had even felt comfortable around Kakashi and Team 7. The master copy-nin smiled to himself as she shut off the lights.

"Kakashi-sensei, I'm THIIIIRSTY! Can you get me a glass of water!?"

"Shut it, Naruto."

"Hey! Shut up yourself, gothie!"

"Naruto, Sasuke cut it out. I can feel wrinkles forming on my otherwise perfect face."

"If they're not already there! Hey! I bet that's what your mask is hiding! I'm right, aren't I, Kakashi sensei! Probably covers a buncha' wrinkles-- ooh! And liver spots and moles with hair growing out of them! And-- And--"

"Good night, Naruto."

"Hmmph."

3:00 AM

Sakura's eyes flew open; as a med-nin in training, she could feel that something was wrong. She jumped out of bed, almost tripping on her bag and flipped on the light-switch. Cherry lay on the left side of the large bed, whimpering and tossing.

"Kawaii-sensei? Kawaii-sensei?" Sakura called softly as she gently shook the Lady. She could feel Cherry perspiring through the nightdress. Cherry moaned softly and her brows knit. Sakura felt her forehead; she was burning up,

"Kawaii-sensei! Sensei! Please wake up!" Sakura called, a bit louder. The scarred woman tossed again and began to shake. Sakura's eyes widened as the redhead let out another moan and began to cry.

"Kawaii-sensei!" She called louder as she shook her a bit harder, but nothing seemed to work. For a moment, she was very, very frightened. Something was wrong. Very wrong and there was nobody-- wait! Sakura took off as fast as she could, clattering down the hallway and skidding to a halt next to where her spiky-haired teacher lay,

"KAKASHI-SENSEI!" Kakashi bolted up,

"What is it, Sakura!?" Sakura, by this time, was almost in tears. Kakashi's apartment looked very shady, and it was _so_ dark outside; those things only added to the terror of a patient going into some sort of spasm,

"Something's wrong with Kawaii-sensei!" Sakura cried between sobs. Kakashi rose and almost flew to the master bedroom.

Cherry lay helpless beneath the covers, whimpering and shaking violently.

"Sakura, you're the med-nin! What's wrong with her!?" Kakashi asked as he ran to the bedside and laid a hand on the former Anbu's burning forehead. Sakura breathed heavily as she ran a hand through her messy pink locks,

"I-I. . . I don't know-- wait!" She ran to her red bag and pulled out a green book. She sat down on the floor and began flipping through the pages.

"Violent shaking, perspiration, tears. . . Ah!! Found it!" She jumped up and began reading the page,

"It's called the mid-night shakes! It's a common re-occurring development that those under a great amount of mental or physical stress suffer. . . It says the treatment is different for each patient! The book says to calm the patient!" She looked up at Kakashi,

"Kakashi-sensei, How do we calm her? I. . . I don't know. . . And I'm really scared!"

Kakashi's eyes grew wide,  
"The clipboard!"

Sakura looked up at him,  
"What?"

Kakashi grabbed her shoulders,  
"Where did I put it-- the clipboard I got from her nurse when I picked Kawaii-chan up at the hospital that tells how to take care of her!?" Sakura's eyebrows furrowed,

"Um-- on the table in the front room, I think!" Kakashi bolted out the door and immediately began tearing through the room. Naruto mumbled from where he lay groggily,

"Would ja keep it down, Master Kakashi. . . ?" he mumbled, "I'm trying to get some. . . sleep. . ." Kakashi found the clipboard under the table and raced back to the lit room,

"Here." Kakashi said as he handed the board to Sakura

Sakura ran her forefinger down the black print,

"Um. . . Oh! Okay, it says here that she frequently suffers from the midnight shakes. . . Cure. . .cure. . .cure-- aha! It says to calm her by pinning her down." Kakashi motioned to Cherry,

"You're the med-nin." Sakura raced to the side of the bed and tried to pin Cherry's hands down but was promptly thrown across the room and came in contact with the wall in a loud crash.

"Oi, Sakura, are you alright?" Kakashi asked from the bedside. Sakura rubbed her now aching skull,

"I guess. . . But she's too strong for me to hold down!" Kakashi scoffed,

"She can't be _that_ strong; she's still recovering from torture." Sakura stood and pointed to the fresh dent in the wall. Kakashi sweatdropped,

"Okay. . . Maybe she _is _that strong."

"Kakashi-sensei, you've got to pin her down; you're way stronger than I am." Kakashi sighed,

"Fine, 'med-nin' Sakura." he said sarchasically gently as he placed a warm right hand on top of her left. Her fingers were death-cold (not to mention clammy) and tensed at the warmth of Kakashi's hand. He carefully covered her right with his left. The Lady began to calm for a moment, only to begin to thrash again.

Sakura had, by this time, opened her med-book and her eyes grew wider then they had been before,

"Kakashi-sensei, you need to hurry! If she keeps this up for over seven minutes, she'll have a stroke-- or a spasm-- or a convulsion! Please hurry!" Kakashi's grip tightened on her slender hands and, with his knees, pinned her legs down,

"Kawaii-chan, wake up." He said quietly in a gruff voice. The lady only began to shake more.

At this time, Naruto decided to make his appearance. He stood groggily at the door and seconds later his eyes budged out of his head,

"WOAH! HAHA! MASTER KAKAS--"

POW! Naruto fell to the floor, unconscious and with an impression of Sakura's fist in the side of his head. Sakura cracked her knuckles,

"Cha!" Inner Sakura cried triumphantly.

"Thank you, Sakura." Kakashi grunted, still struggling with the semi-unconcious lady as Sakura picked up the blonde's body and dragged it back to the sitting room.

Kakashi brought his attention back the quaking lady. He had been counting every second since he had entered the room. Five minutes and thirty-five seconds. Roughly two minutes left. And how long had she been like this before Sakura had ran to get him? He couldn't bear to think of what could happen if this went on,

"Kawaii-chan!" He growled,

"You need to wake up now!" he shouted. The girl's eyes flew open. . .

But there was no former Anbu Cherry Kawaii there. Instead of the red-brown eyes that had shone into his many times before, a luminous blue glowed from the entire socket. For a moment, Kakashi stared into her eyes, completely terror stricken. He felt like a child who had just realized an trusted adult was not truly for Konoha's cause, but for the enemy's.

"Cherry. . .?" her long lashes blinked and the glowing faded back to the red-brown that he knew. Her irises searched his, the mangekyo and the grey boaring down almost into her subconscious. She blinked again and tears began sliding down her face. Kakashi cautiously let her up and tried to form words with his seemingly frozen tonque and lips.

As the masked nin sat back, Cherry threw herself into his arms and continued to weep silently. Kakashi held the redhead snugly in his arms. She was quivering and shaking horribly, but he noticed her face had cooled down and after awhile, her sobbing began to subside. After a few more moments, they pulled away from one another. She smiled gratefully at him.

"Are you alright, Kawaii-chan?" She nodded and wiped her eyes.

"Then I'm going back to sleep. Good night." Kakashi said as he got up from the bed and left the room with as much dignity as he could muster. Sakura passed him at the door, turned out the light, and slid into bed,

"Sleep well, Kawaii-sensei." Sakura mumbled as she instantly fell asleep due to exhaustion.

Cherry lay in the complete darkness for a few moments, collecting her thoughts. She could remember nothing, just like all the nights at the hospital. The nurses, though, claimed that her nightly terrors would be over. Maybe it was something that she ate. . . She would be sure to check the expiration date on the milk the next morning.

As she closed her eyes, the silver-haired Jounin's face appeared in her mind. He had woken her like a gallant hero from her ghastly nighttime stupor. She sighed to herself and snuggled down in the warm covers. The smell of the blankets settled her mind; it was Kakashi's smell. Cherry fell asleep with a smile on her face, thinking of the brave, mysterious Jounin.

Naruto bolted up,

"MAN! I HAD THE WEIRDEST DREAM, KAKASHI SENSEI!" He shouted. Kakashi sat up drowsily and rubbed his eyes. Sasuke sat against the wall, already dressed with a smirk on his face,

"You're not exactly an early-bird, are you?" He asked drolly. Kakashi scratched his mask,

"Nope." Kakshi glanced at the clock. Seven AM. 'Bloody bad time to wake up' He thought sleepily to himself. He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and came to be aware of Sakura laughing heartily in the next room. With slow, aching morning movements, he made his way to the master bedroom and knocked. The laughing ceased immediately,

"Come in!" Sakura called cheerily.

Sakura and Cherry were both sitting on the large bed.

"Hi, Kakashi-sensei! We were just-- heh-- talking about you!" Sakura said. She was already dressed for the day, behind Cherry, who was still in the nightdress. Kakashi ignored the comment and leaned against the doorframe,

"Sleep well?" Sakura grinned,

"No problems after the incident." Kakashi grunted,

"That's good-- Hey." Sakura looked up,

"Yes?"

"What are you doing?" Kakashi asked as he rounded the bed to where Sakura sat.

"Braiding Kawaii-sensei's hair" Sakura said as she pointed to the thick red braid she was weaving, "Her hair's really fun to play with! So soft and easy to work with! And so long, too!" Kakashi raised an eyebrow. He subconciously shoved down an aching in his hands to run his hand through the red locks,

"You're not going to wear your hair down, Kawaii-chan?" He asked (a bit dry-mouthed) the redhead with just a tinge of disappointment in his voice. Cherry blushed as stared down at her clenched hands.

"She wanted to," Sakura said, "But I convinced her otherwise. It's much easier to shop and try on clothes when your hair isn't getting messy and flying all over," She explained. Kakashi, at this time, felt an urge to put the pink haired Kouinichi is a chokehold, but nodded instead.

"There's a little yellow box inside of the red duffle bag, can you get it for me, Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura asked absentmindedly as she scooted back in order to continue braiding the massive amount of hair. Kakashi knelt down and pulled out the desired box and handed it to her. From it, Sakura pulled a long green ribbon and tied the end of Cherry's hair with it. She sat back and examined her work,

"What do you think, Kakashi-sensei?" She asked after a moment. Kakashi blushed under his mask as Cherry glanced up at him apprehensively. He noticed her even bangs fell into her eyes as she turned her face away.

"I think it's beautiful." Kakashi said quietly as he left the room. Sakura sat flabbergasted for around thirty seconds,

"Wow! That was so cool! Kakashi-sensei complimented you! He never does that, unless you're exceptional!" Sakura exclaimed. Cherry blushed further.

"Hey! Kawaii-sensei, you wore pigtails on the first day we met, can you do them in my hair!? I want to see what Sasuke Says!" (Of course, he didn't even seem to notice them) Cherry grinned and pulled two loose red ribbons out of the box and turned Sakura around.

Kakashi, Sasuke and Naruto waited in the sitting room.

"Man! What could be taking them!? They can't have SO much to get ready for! We're only going shopping!" Naruto whined impatiently. At the moment, Sasuke was trying to walk on the walls and Kakashi was reading another of those accursed Icha Icha books.

Kakashi was suddenly aware of a pair of dainty feet in front of him. His attention went to a flowing green halter-top dress that was empress-waisted and flowed down to pale, scarred knees. He swallowed and brought his attention to the face it belonged to.

"Oi, Kakashi-sensei. Isn't that a pretty dress?" a pigtailed Sakura asked as she came up behind the lady. Kakashi stood and grunted.

"My mom loaned it to her!" Sakura said proudly.

"Yeah, Yeah, can we gooooo already!?" Naruto whined from the door. A vein showed on Sakura's forehead and Kakashi almost instinctively ducked for cover. Sakura suddenly turned to Sasuke cheerily,

"Sasuke-kuuuuuun!! Did you notice anything different about me today!?" She asked, pointing to the pigtails. Sasuke raised an eyebrow,

"You're even more pesky than usual?" Sakura scowled,

"I'm wearing cute pigtails!!!" Sasuke grunted and stuffed his hands in his pockets,

"Whatever."

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Well? I hope you enjoyed it. I do admit that writing this part was very necessary but was quite tedious and not much fun 0.o I hope to get the next chpater out as soon as possible, but I need motivation! Review PLEASE! It'll take less time then it did to read this!!

Mysteria Pearl


	4. Chapter 4

Kawaii-sensei!! Kawaii-sensei!! Sakura, w-wait up!" Sakura turned and found Naruto, Sasuke and Kakashi huffing and puffing behind she and Cherry. Sakura giggled to herself. Sasuke looked so cute with so many packages in his arms, almost like a little husband! Naruto was stuck with a larger armful and Kakashi-sensei-- well, Sakura could only barely see the top of his pointy hair.

"What's wrong guys, tired already?" Sakura said as she put her hands on her hips. The pile of boxes that was formerly known as Sasuke jiggled a bit as he shifted,

"You're really good at being a pain, do you know that?" Sasuke asked with (presumably) a smirk on his face.

"Yeah! Yeah! Sakura-chan!! Sakura-chan, can't we please stop shopping now!? I mean-- we've gone into, like, twenty stores already!" the orange ninja whined from behind the mountain of packages he carried.

"Come on, guys, we've only been shopping for four hours." Sakura said as she skipped ahead of the group,

"Ooh! Look-- a shop specifically for dresses! Come on, Kawaii-sensei!!! Just wait out here guys-- oh, and don't put those packages on the ground! They could get all dirty!" Sakura grinned as she heard a moan from all three of the 'pack-mules'.

Kakashi looked about for a place to sit, and finally just decided to sit on the ground with the mountain on his lap. Sasuke, somehow, managed to balance all of the boxes on his gelled head and leaned cool-ly against a wall.

"Master Kakaaaaaaaashi, why are you even going aloooooong with this!?" Naruto complained as he wobbled to and fro. Kakashi shrugged (from what they could tell),

"Uh. . . This is a valuable lesson for Kawaii-chan." Kakashi said.

"And that would be. . . ?" Sasuke asked from where he stood. Kakashi's eye wrinkled in a smile,

"It's teaching her to be confident in a social environment with people she's never met before." Naruto nodded,

"That makes sense! That makes sense!"

Kakashi chuckled,

"And it's also teaching her how to use a charge-card."

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"Oi, Kawaii-sensei! Kawaii-sensei, look at this!" Sakura cooed as she pulled a frilly pink dress from one of the racks,

"Isn't this beautiful!?" Cherry nodded hesitantly and then returned her stare to where it had formerly been. Sakura followed her gaze to a flowy purple dress. It was hanging delicately on one of the major displays with a sign next to it that said 'One of a kind. Please do not touch unless you intend to buy it.' Sakura's eyes trailed down to the price tag and then looked back up at the solemn woman. Her expression was almost indescribable. Such a look of sadness, almost of longing. The looked changed into a daydream-ish look and then became serious once again. After that, the redhead turned away from the display and walked further into the store. Sakura watched her as she pretended to busy herself with other dresses as she fumbled through them. Sakura smiled,

"Kawaii-sensei, I have to. . . Um, use the restroom. I'll be right back. Don't you go anywhere, ok?" Cherry nodded and smiled sadly as Sakura turned and walked out the front doors.

Kakashi looked up from Sasuke and Naruto's argue and found Sakura twiddling with her skirt and biting her lip,

"Everything okay, Sakura?"

Sakura looked at the ground and shook her head slowly,  
"Kakashi sensei. . . Um. . ."

Kakashi nodded,  
"Yes?"

"I. . . Well, do you know what we've bought for Kawaii-sensei so far?" Kakashi shook his head.

"Well," Sakura said slowly, "We've bought her new shoes, a couple of jackets, and some practical clothes that would be good for rehabilitation and activity. . . Oh, and some for everyday use. But. . ." She glanced at the expensive dress store, "Come on." she said as she took the Jounin by the wrist and pulled him to his feel, knocking the mountain of packages to the ground,

"_Those_ packages will be fine." Sakura said as she pulled Kakashi into the store past Sasuke and Naruto's disgusted faces.

Kakashi stared up at the purple dress.

"Was I right?" Sakura asked quietly, as to not pull attention to herself from Cherry. Kakashi was silent for a moment,

"It's. . . very nice, Sakura." he said softly as he stuffed his hands in his pockets and sighed.

"Don't you think it would be wonderful on Kawaii-sensei?" Sakura asked hopefully.

Kakashi stared at it for a moment longer,

"It would be beautiful." he breathed as he walked to the front desk. An annoyed woman answered him,

"May I help you with something, sir?" He nodded,

"The purple dress on the display. Wrap it up." he said simply. The woman grinned,

"Certainly, sir!" she said as she hurriedly fetched the dress and boxed it up,

"So," she said in a nasal voice, "Who's this for? Wife? Sista? Daughta? Motha?"

"A friend." Kakashi said blatantly as he took out his wallet and paid the woman in cash.

"Thank you for your purchase! Please shop here again soon!" The woman said happily as Kakashi took the box and exited the store.

Sakura stood where the dress had been, a look of extreme shock still on her face. She was only going to ask Kakashi-sensei to chip in for a third-- a half, maybe, of the cost. But he-- he had paid the entire amount-- 30,000 yen for that dress! She was pulled out of her shock as she felt something tug at her sleeve. Sakura looked up and found Cherry staring patiently down at her. Sakura smiled weakly,

"So, did you find anything you like?" she asked, still a bit shaken. Cherry shrugged and glanced at where the dress once hung, suddenly obtaining a disappointed look.

"Oh, some guy came in and bought it for someone while you were looking around. . . Sorry." Cherry shrugged and regained her happy air as she and Sakura headed out of the store.

About another hour of shopping and the girls were finally ready to go home.

"Whoo! I never thought I'd be so happy to sit down in my entire life!" Naruto exclaimed as he set the packages down on the table and flopped down on the floor. Sasuke also gratefully dropped the packages and sat down against the wall and Kakashi put all of the packages down and then made a motion to Sakura. Sakura nodded,

"Come on, Kawaii-sensei! _WE_ need to go wash our hands because we've-- um, been out in the public shops all day!" As soon as Sakura and Cherry had made their exit, Kakashi whisked up a thin black package, and without another word, poofed away., only to be back moments later, empty handed. By this time, Naruto was already snoring and Sasuke couldn't care less about the mysterious package.

Sakura and Cherry spent the rest of the day in Kakashi's room, Cherry trying on all of her new clothes. Sakura had actually bought Cherry her own green suitcase for when she would return to Lady Tsunade's. Kakashi, Naruto and Sasuke spent most of their "free time" (ha) hauling empty packages, bags and boxes out to the dumpster after Cherry and Sakura had emptied them. (They actually filled a whole dumpster and had to sneak about ten big boxes and twelve bags into the next block's dumpster.)

Sakura and Cherry then busied themselves with dinner. Kakashi sat on the ceiling and read his new Icha Icha book as Naruto tried to grab it from him and Sasuke was having another conversation with his squirrel-friends out on the balcony.

"Kakashi-sensei, Naruto, Saaaaaaaasuke-kuuuuun! Cherry-sensei and I made some dinner for you!" Sakura sang excitedly as she skipped merrily into the room, plates of steaming pork in her hands. Hearing the word 'dinner,' Sasuke came in from the balcony, Kakashi floated down from the ceiling and Naruto dropped his antics and practically threw himself down at the table. Cherry followed Sakura into the room and they began handing out the steaming plates. Naruto immediately tore up his food and Sasuke ate quietly, once in awhile insulting Naruto's eating habits. After a while, Kakashi stood and took his plate out to the balcony. Sakura watched as Cherry's eyes followed the copy-nin.

"Oi, Kawaii-sensei, why don't you go and eat on the balcony with Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura asked with a smile. Cherry bit her lip and stood slowly. She picked up her dish and gracefully headed to the door.

Kakashi stared up at the night sky as he lifted a hand to his mask. He froze as he felt a presence behind him at the door. He turned and found the red haired beauty softly walking toward him. He smiled to himself,

"You want to eat out here with me?" Kakashi asked, more in astonishment then an invitation. Cherry nodded and sat down next to him. Kakashi sat still for a moment,

"Kawaii-chan, would you mind. . . Not facing me while we eat?" he asked softly. Cherry looked up at him and their eyes met. She smiled up at him and turned away from him. She sat with her back against his and continued eating. Kakashi could feel Cherry lean the back of her head against his back and he quickly removed his mask and downed his food. His returned his mask to the appropriate position,

"Kawaii-chan. . . I'm very proud of you." he felt her shift so that she sat silently at his right.

"You're adapting very well, do you know that?" Cherry blushed as stared down at her clenched hands.

"You know how to cook, how to get along well with different kinds of people, you've learned to be in a public place and not be afraid, and you've also learned to shop." Kakashi said and chuckled,

"I've also noticed that you're walking a bit better then when I first saw you. Kawaii-chan. . . I think that. . . You're almost ready." Cherry looked up at him, perplexed. Kakashi painfully tore his gaze away from her soft golden eyes and forced himself to look at the sunset. Not matter how much he didn't want to say it, it was his duty as a shinobi to complete all of his tasks,

"I think it's almost time for you to return to Lady Tsunade at the Hokage's Tower. She's asked for you to stay with her and to work for her until you're fully capable of living on your own, even longer if you so desire. My job. . ." he sighed,

"My team's job is only to rehabilitate you and to get you back on the path to full recovery. It will be a complete. . . joy to see you return to a normal life." Kakashi said as he closed his eyes. He gathered his thoughts for a moment and then turned his gaze back to the woman. Her expression was unreadable. She sat with her hands clenched and her eyes were almost on the verge of tears, yet her actual expression looked almost thankful.

"Kawaii-chan, are you alright?" Kakashi asked. Cherry's eyes darted up to his and her expression changed in the blink of an eye. She smiled up at him happily and nodded. Kakashi grunted,

"Good. Then. . . I think. . . I think that we'll take you back to Lady Tsunade tomorrow evening. Is that alright?" Cherry's thin eyebrows knit as she stared out over the roofs of Konoha and then she gained a peaceful look and nodded.

"Alright. Then, we better be getting to bed, ne?" Kakashi asked as he stood and helped Cherry to her feet. She smiled gratefully and they headed inside.

"Nuh-uh! I bet Kakashi's just got a birthmark or something under his mask!"

"I bet he has whiskers!"

"Whiskers? All older guys have 'whiskers'. Sakura, Naruto, you're so obnoxious."

"Oh yeah, gothie!? Well, at least I don't wear black clothes that clash with blue hair!"

"Hey! Naruto, don't insult Sasuke! I think he looks very handsome in dark colors! Besides, you're blonde and wear an orange jumpsuit!"

"Hey! It's a fashion statement! Besides, it's better than Mr. Emo!"

"It is not! Take that back, Naruto!"

"No way, Sakura! If he has a problem, he can tell me himself!"

"Well-well-UUGH!"

"Bedtime, brats." Kakashi said bluntly, interrupting the fight. Cherry peeked out timidly from the widely-shouldered man. Naruto grumbled about 'and I was winning the fight, too.' while Sasuke continued to sulk. Sakura took Cherry to the master bedroom.

Kakashi sat down heavily on the floor,

"Sasuke, Naruto, tomorrow we'll be taking Kawaii-chan back to Lady Tsunade tomorrow." Kakashi said.

"WHAT!?" Naruto shouted, head growing large,

"But-but Master Kakashi! She hasn't been here for very long! And-and she hasn't even spoken yet! How-how can you make go back to Grandma Tsunade without even fully curing her!?"

"Going to miss her, are we?" Kakashi said as he pulled out his little orange book. Naruto blushed,

"No! Well, maybe. . . But how can you be so mean, Master Kakashi!" Sasuke grunted in agreement,

"I hate to say it, but Naruto's right. For once. Don't you think if would be risky to bring her back so soon?" Kakashi shook his head,

"I've already told Ch-- Kawaii-chan. She seemed fine with the idea. Besides, it will be good to settle her into her new home before she gets. . . too. . . attached. . ."

Naruto plopped down on the floor with his arms crossed,

"Well, what's wrong with her being attached to us!? She's really cool and we all really like her, right Sasuke!?" Sasuke hesitantly nodded and grunted,

"Sure, whatever."

Kakashi said nothing for a few moments and sighed,

"You'll understand this when you're older, Naruto. Sometimes you. . . just have to do what's best for someone who's important to you. . . Even if the result isn't pleasant to you. After all, you want to be Hokage, right?" Naruto grunted eagerly.

"Being Hokage is more then just being the best and having the title. You learned that from Sabaku Gaara Kazekage, didn't you?" Naruto thought back to the actions of the noble fifth Kazekage,

"Yeah. I guess so."

Kakashi smiled,

"Good. Now, it's time for bed."

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Thanks for reading! I hope you liked this chapter! Ooh! And I even snuck Gaara into this chapter (sorta). Please review so I don't go any crazier than I am already. Thank you to my (few) reviewers! I hope to post the next chappie soon!

Mysteria Pearl


	5. Chapter 5

Naruto stirred and opened his eyes. He had felt something glowing. How ridiculous that sounded, he thought, until he was staring up into glowing blue eyes. Above him stood the glowing body of a woman. Her nightgown flowed in some imaginary wind and her long, unbound red hair floated in waves around her. Naruto tried to shout but found he couldn't, he couldn't even move. The figure floated in the air above him, softly glowing blue. He frantically tried to call for Kakashi, Sakura, Sasuke-- anybody, but he felt as if he was frozen solid. The glowing face stared down at him, with everything but pleasant written upon it.

The face stared down at him-- he very well couldn't call it Cherry's face, because she didn't seem to be the one who was behind it. The woman's body hovered above him for a moment before she began walking-- on the air! Naruto could see the chakra exiting the bottoms of her bare feet as she glided across the air towards the balcony. It's piercing, glowing blue eyes traced over the sleeping shapes of Sasuke and the master copy-nin. It rested Cherry's long fingers against the doorframe and extended the other hand toward the blonde ninja. Naruto felt a cold sensation before he passed out of consciousness.

Kakashi didn't know why he woke, but something had disturbed him. He sat up groggily and took a look around him. Naruto was snoring softly in a fairly odd position and Sasuke-- well, Sasuke always looked as if he was dead when he slept, no surprise there. Kakashi rubbed his sleepy Mangekyo Sharingan and took a second look around. He could see, down the hall, the master bedroom that Sakura and Cherry had been sharing had it's door wide open. Looking behind him, he found the sliding door to the balcony also slightly ajar. He stood and weaved his way around the two sleeping ninja to the screen. He softly pulled it open and stood staring into glowing eyes.

The scarred body stood on the balcony's railing. It glowed a soft blue against the black sky.

"Kawaii-chan. . . ?" Kakashi asked. The figure smiled-- not a friendly smile, nor a sneer, but one of evil.

"Well, well, Kakashi." A voice said. Kakashi could tell it wasn't that of Cherry, but someone else.

"Where is Kawaii-chan and who are you!?" Kakashi growled as he took a step toward the door. The body made a slight move,

"Uh, uh, uh. I wouldn't come any closer if I was you." The body said as it motioned to the drop, "Or something. . . _dreadful_ might smudge your resume."

Kakashi growled as he stepped back.

"That's better." the wispy voice hissed. It chuckled, "She never told you, huh?"

"Told me what? She's never even spoken to me." Kakashi said.

The figure chuckled,  
"Of course not. Who do you think caused that?" the figure said as it wound the red hair around it's finger

"Who are you?" Kakashi repeated sternly.

The figure's eyebrows knit,  
"You mean 'who was I?'." The figure sneered, "Oh, nobody important. Just a human."

"What did Kawaii-chan ever do to you!?" Kakashi asked.

The figure shrugged,  
"Oh, nothing really. Just completely RUINED my life!"

"Kawaii-chan would never intentionally do that!" he snarled.

The figure laughed,  
"Oh really?" The figure flipped Cherry's hair, "She and my husband had been on the same team as youth. When I met him, I convinced him to. . . Turn to a _different_ path. We married but. . ." the figure took a shaky breath,

"But that. . . That little brat, Cherry. . . She. . . She accepted the mission to take us down. . . She. . . She found him and convinced him to take his punishment." Kakashi became aware of tears forming in the glowing blue eyes, "He was forced to do ten years of labor. . . My husband-- my dear husband died painfully of that labor. . . And yet. . . It would have been so _easy_ for her to just kill both of us. . . But she-- she left me- ME with all the heartache-- all the guilt of my late husband! It's-- It's all her fault that my life is how it is! She is the reason my husband is dead!" The figure flipped the red hair again,

"And then, and then I decided to take revenge. I trained for months and finally, I was able to capture her entire team!" Here, the voice cackled,  
"And I tortured them for days, weeks, even. I did everything I could think of, pulling out their nails, slicing their skin, whipping, beatings, you name it, but somehow-- somehow the three of them kept spirit." Here, the glow's voice growled,

"So I decided I would show her what it was like to live with the guilt, the suffering. So, I simply decided to kill them; her two teammates. I killed them both oh so slowly-- so perfectly gruesome! And I made her watch. Ha. . . She begged and she pleaded. . . But I killed them slowly and painfully right in front of her. There was nothing she could have done. After that, she refused to speak, but. . . That wasn't enough. I-- I needed more! So, I-- I entered a part of myself into her mind. . . And I've given her spasms every night. . . Every night for the past two years or so. . . I haven't really kept count. . . Even when the other Anbu came and found her, they killed me, of course, but I'm still here, here in her mind and I'm not leaving until I have done my duty! She wouldn't-- couldn't even tell them that I'm here, ha! She could hardly remember it. But I kept bringing back the most gruesome memories that are lodged away back here," The figure pointed a long nail to Cherry's head,

"Here is where the real scars are. And now, it's time to end my suffering, once and for all. Say goodbye to your _precious_ Kawaii-chan." The figure hissed. Kakashi stood , unable to move, as the figure stepped off of the rail into the thin night air. It began walking away, above the rooftops, far above the trees, away toward the river. It's movements were beautiful, but it's motives were certainly ugly.

"Kawaii-chan!" Kakashi called frantically as he looked around for a way to follow her,

"KAWAII-CHAN!" He shouted. The figure turned, midair, and smirked at him,

"Say goodbye." The figure said as it turned and slowly continued.

"Kawaii-chan! Kawaii-chan!" Kakashi cried.

"Kakashi-sensei! What's going on!? Kawaii-sensei wasn't in bed and Naruto said she was glowing and floating and--" Kakashi found Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke behind him on the balcony one moment and the next, they were on the ground, chasing the glowing, floating woman, all screaming her name. The figure glanced down and waved at them mockingly every few minutes as the four ninja tried to leap to her.

The four ran on the tree limbs below the Lady and the figure mocked them by floating almost within their reach, but not ever close enough. The glowing figure led them on for about half of an hour until the five came to the edge of a gorge with a fast, rapid river running through the bottom. The figure stopped in the air about twenty feet ahead of them, right above the edge of the steep cliff.

"I've finally done it. . . This is the end." the figure said as she lifted her head to the sky. The clouds brought forth droplets of rain that quickly turned into a wall of water raining down on the five. Their bedclothes clung to them as they stood at the stalemate.

"I have finally fulfilled my duty, my husband." The figure murmured as it's tears mixed with the rain.

"Duty!? What's Kawaii-sensei talking about, Master Kakashi!?" Naruto called as lightning flashed

"I don't think that's Kawaii-sensei! It's not , is it, Kakashi-sensei!?" Sakura cried over the thunder. Kakashi was silent

The glowing figure turned toward him,  
"My brilliant plan has come to a close. Sayonara forever, Kakashi." It sneered. The glow suddenly went out completely and for a moment, only the chakra remained beneath her feet, holding the girl up. Her eyes blinked and her irises returned to the normal gold and met Kakashi's for only a split second. . .

And then she fell.

Sakura shrieked and Naruto and Sasuke looked on in terror as the Lady fell towards the rushing water. Her hair flew wildly above her and the translucent nightgown clung to her body in the rain. In a split-second Kakashi had made up his mind and jumped after her.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke screamed as their teacher disappeared into the darkness of the gorge.

Kakashi fell with purpose. He propelled his body as quickly as he could the to falling Lady's side. Kakashi reached out a large hand toward the Lady's thin one and caught it after a few tries. Her tearful eyes reached his as he pulled her firmly into his arms. He could feel her let out a breath as she gripped the back of his shirt and buried her face in his chest.

"I told you, you can trust me!" Kakashi shouted above the thunder,  
"No matter what, I'll be by your side!"

And then they plunged into the deep, swift water.


	6. Chapter 6

"Kakashi-sensei! Kawaii-sensei!" Sakura shrieked as saw and heard the splash. She looked up tearfully at Sasuke and Naruto,

"We-we have to do something! They'll drown! We have to save them!" She cried as she pulled as their wrists. Naruto stared down, wide-eyed into the canyon while Sasuke began scaling the steep walls,

"Oi, Naruto, stop looking stupid. Kakashi-sensei and Kawaii-sensei are in trouble." Sasuke said as he continued down, followed by Sakura.

"Yeah! They needs us!" Naruto cried as he scurried down after Sakura and Sasuke.

Kakashi took a large gasp of air as he pulled Cherry to the surface of the torrents. They bobbed there a moment, her body limp in his arms, apparently unconscious, until Kakashi caught sight of the shore. He had held her the entire time and was not about to let go. He swam with all the strength he had-- he kicked with all his might. Sputtering, coughing, and shaking from head to toe, he somehow managed to make through the raging river to shore with the girl in his arms. He crawled onto the river shore and pulled her limp body out of the water. Her cold, wet body lay on top of his, with her head on his chest. He brushed a long wet strand of hair out of her pale face,

"K-Kawaii-chan?" He asked between scattered, deep breaths. He watched as her eyelids fluttered open and she coughed up a lungful of water and smiled up weakly at him. Kakashi set his head back down on the ground and lay his arms around her waist,

"You're alright." He breathed thankfully as he felt tears well up in his eyes, "I'm so happy." he whispered as he embraced the shivering Lady, crying quietly into her damp hair. They stayed there for a few moments until Kakashi had enough energy to move. He sat up and pulled the soaked Lady into his arms, holding her gently against his damp tank. She pulled away from him and looked up at him for a moment. Then, she opened her mouth as if she was about to speak-- only to be interrupted by a certain Mr. #1 Hyperactive Knucklehead ninja, Gothie-Emo Lad, and Little Miss Forehead.

"Kawaii-sensei! Kawaii-sensei! You're alright!" called a feminine voice.

"Master Kakashi! You're okay too!" Naruto exclaimed as he jumped to the ground. Sasuke and Sakura somehow ended up behind him. Kakashi stood and helped Cherry stand up. Sasuke and Naruto were silent for a second as they stared at Cherry while Kakashi nervously turned away and found a rock completely _fascinating_. A nice, large vein popped out of the center of Sakura's forehead,

"ARRAGH! NARUTO, SASUKE, STOP BEING SO IMMATURE! Stop staring at her undergarments!" She hissed loudly as she took off her fuzzy (fairly damp) robe and wrapped it around the Lady's [now practically transparent nightgown. Cherry smiled timidly and nodded in thanks.

A few more awkward seconds passed as the two puberty-stricken nin boys snapped out of it and Kakashi turned back around and cleared his throat,

"Anyway. . . We should be heading back. We have a long day ahead of us."

Naruto yawned wearily as they entered the dark apartment. They weren't really worried about a robber sneaking in through the balcony and stealing anything, they weren't worried about any potential insects that had flown in or any random raccoon that had wandered in, all they cared about was sleep.

About halfway back to the apartment, Cherry had passed out due to exhaustion and Kakashi had carried her the rest of the way. Sasuke acted perfectly awake, only to plunk down headfirst into his sleeping bag the moment they arrived. Sakura, on the other hand, had talked almost the whole way back, trying to keep herself awake. Not that her voice was bad or anything-- just the continual rambling. By the end of the night, it had gone from reasonable thought to complete gibberish. She also headed straight for bed. And Naruto. . . Well, he had stumbled through the distance like a drunk man, wobbling this way and that, falling over a few times, even saying unintelligible things like "Where's Mr. Hoppity-Hop!?" and "I don't like the flying monkeys, Granny Tsunade!" Naruto had collapsed just past the door, in the hall. Kakashi decided to just leave him there but to put a pillow under his head before the masked Jounin went to sleep.

Kakashi softly tread to what was once known as his bedroom. He shifted Cherry into his left arm so he could open the door and silently slipped in. He spotted Sakura already in the far side of the bed, snoring every few moments. He chuckled to himself and set Cherry down on the bed. Their nightclothes had dried in the warm night air long before they had reached the "headquarter." He pulled up the soft feather comforters around the sleeping Lady and smiled as his hand accidentally brushed her face. He knelt down at the beside and watched her fondly for a moment. She smiled in her sleep, he noticed. As he stared at her, it truly hit him for the first time-- he realized, suddenly with a pang of sorrow, that this would be the last night he would see her. He lifted a gentle hand and caressed her face.

'If only,' He thought bitterly to himself, 'If only I could love you, if only it wasn't my job to make you leave. . . If only I wasn't. . . old. If only, if only." He sat for a moment as tears came to his eyes.

'Forever. Never. Never seeing her again.' He raised a hand to his throbbing heart as a rush of emotions crammed his chest and head. He wanted. . . He wanted so badly for her to be the one 'To love and to cherish. . . and to spend my life with. . . for the rest of my days.' Kakashi leaned down and brushed his masked lips against her forehead. Two or three of his tears dropped to her face and Kakashi laughed choked-ly as he gently wiped them away,

"I can't believe. . ." he said in almost a whisper, "That you won't-- that you can't stay in my arms forever. . . I feel like I've lost you. . . I miss you already. . ." Kakashi stood and stared longingly at her sleeping figure one last time before he made his leave.

"_Kakashi-kun! Kakashi-kun!" _Kakashi bolted up from where he lay. His entire body was drenched with sweat and he was shaking. He ran to the bathroom, retched, and returned to the spot where he had formerly been sleeping. By that time, it was sunrise. Kakashi sat back down on his sleeping bag and put his throbbing head in his hands as he reflected on the horrible dream he had just suffered. He could sharply remember the images that haunted him; a beautiful redhead, blood curtailing shrieks of terror, pain, gore, death, and he was unable to do anything.

He became vaguely aware of a hand softly rubbing his long, muscled shoulder. He looked up and found Cherry kneeling next to him. She had her left hand laid over his left and her right hand caressed his left shoulder. She smiled gently at him as the patted his soft, spiky hair.

"I'm fine," Kakashi said warily, "Just. . . Not feeling very well." She sat silently and gave him an expectant look.

"It's nothing." Kakashi said waving his right hand to dismiss the conversation,

"Sorry to wake you," he mumbled as she stood. Cherry smiled down at him once more, patted his head, and returned to her room.

Kakashi sat on his sleeping bag with a smile under his mask. What was that feeling that she made him experience? What was it about the way she gently tousled his hair or the way she gently rubbed his shoulder. He realized, after a few moments, that it was the same thing he had been trying to make her-- happiness. But not only happiness, joy, fondness, care; so long was the list, that Kakashi fell asleep going through all of the feelings.

But he just couldn't help but feel like he was forgetting something.

"OWWW! Master Kakaaaaashi! Why did you let me fall asleep in the hallway!? OWW! Geeze, Master Kakashi, couldn't ya even bring me a pillow!?" Kakashi grimaced at the loud awakening. That was what he had forgotten. Kakashi sat up as Naruto noisily cracked his stiff neck,

"Gosh, Master Kakashi-- Oi, Sakura-chan, what's for breakfast!?"

"Shut up, Naruto," Sasuke said (crankily) from his sleeping bag,

"You're giving me a migraine. Besides, Kakashi-sensei woke me up at four when he went and barfed." Sakura raised an eyebrow from where she and Cherry were drinking tea at the table in their pajamas,

"Are you okay, Kakashi-sensei." Kakashi grunted,

"I'm okay now. Thank you Sakura."

"Why'd ya puke?" Naruto asked randomly after a few moments.

"It was probably past his bedtime when we got back, and maybe he got a bit of a cold from the cold river; you know how sensitive men at his age can be." Sakura said, quite smart-alecky. A slight vein popped out of Kakashi's head,

"What do you mean, _men at my age_?" he asked, a little harshly. Sakura shrugged,

"You know, men going through their mid-life-crisis seem to be more vulnerable then younger men."

"I'm _NOT_ going through a mid-life-crisis! I'm not even _mid life_ yet!" Kakashi argued.

"Ah, the first step: denial." Sakura said calmly as she took a sip of her tea.

"Hey, Master Kakashi! Do you use ointment!? OOH! And you probably have a lotta dandruff! Oh my gosh! Did you have a hair transplant from an old guy with gray hair!?"

Kakashi stood, bumping the table and spilling Sakura's tea all over,

"FOR THE LAST TIME, I AM _NOT _GOING THROUGH _ANY SORT_ OF CRISIS _WHATSOEVER_! I AM A PERFECTLY _FINE_ MAN WHO IS _NOT _OLD!" Kakashi roared before he stomped to the balcony and slammed the sliding door shut behind him.

"What's with him?" Sasuke asked dully as Sakura handed him a cup of tea.

"Second stage: anger." Sakura said with a shrug.

Kakashi sighed as he leaned against the balcony. 'What did those three know, anyway?' He asked himself.

But. . . Then again, maybe they were right. Maybe he was a _bit_ past his prime. But what did other guys do when they weren't. . . ugh, young anymore? He chuckled to himself as he remembered what Jiraiya had dome-- he had bought a warehouse and filled it with "Icha Icha" books. And Baki-- he had bought himself a bunch of new bandanas, all of them color coordinating with his green ninja vest. Even the Third, if he remembered correctly, locked himself up in his tower to re-read every forbidden scroll in Konoha.

Kakashi set his forehead on his arm and became aware that the screen opened and shut behind him.

"K. . . Ka. . .Kakashi-k-kun?"


	7. Chapter 7

Terribly sorry that it took so long, but my comp's been down and yada yada yada.

I just wanna take a moment and say "THANKS!" to my reviewers and my readers! You guys rock!

Anyhoo, on to the fic! Thankies!

Disclaimer: again, I don't own Naruto or any of Masashi Kishimoto's characters. That should be obvious.

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Kakashi sat for a moment, eyes wide open, staring out above the rooftops as he tried to register the voice. After a moment of silence, something warm touched his shoulder,

"Kakashi-kun?" A voice asked sweetly. Not a male voice, nor that of Sakura. It was soft and melodious, almost like a bird. It was timid, yet it was almost like bells. Kakashi could feel his heart race as he looked down to where the redhead stood.

Such a swell of passion came over his heart, such overwhelming ecstasy, that he couldn't help but sweep the girl into his arms. He breathed heavily as his eyes became wet. He had never felt such wonderfully raging emotion before; it was drowning his heart and mind. He was at a loss for words.

"Kakashi-kun?" The sweet, muffled voice asked from against his chest. He drew back and stared down at her, her large golden eyes threatening to drop tears of crystal.

"I-- I'm sorry, Kawaii-chan. . ." Kakashi said as he stepped back and regretfully pulled his arms from around her.

"I. . . I just. . . You spoke." He said bluntly as he ran a hand through his hair. The Lady nodded and smiled sheepishly up at him.

They stood there for a moment in awkward silence, Kakashi contemplating what in Konoha he could possibly say to the kind lady.

"You're voice is . . . Very beautiful. . ." Kakashi said breathlessly as Cherry tucked a long lock of hair behind her ear, clearly embarrassed,

"Th-thank you, Kakashi-kun. . ." she whispered in astonishment as she bit her lip and averted her eyes. Kakashi smiled fondly down at her,

"But. . . But why? Why am _I_ blessed with the sound of your voice?" He asked as he leaned against the rail. Cherry absentmindedly twiddled her fingers and played with a ribbon on the nightgown,

"Be-because of what you s-said. . . Y-you said that y-you would a-always be h-here for me. . . And. . . And you saved me. . ." she whispered quietly.

"I'm just glad that you're alright." Kakashi said with an eye-wrinkling smile. They stood there in a peaceful silence for a few moments.

Kakashi stared day-dreamily at the timid creature. So beautiful and so timid.

"Kakashi-kun?" Cherry asked after a while.

"Hmmn. . . ?"

Cherry's eyes went to the ground,

"I. . . Are you. . . Do you. . ." her voice trailed off as she fiddled with her unbound, smooth hair.

"Yes. . .?" Kakashi asked. Cherry let out a breath that she had apparently been holding,

"Do. . . Do you t-truly ta-take to h-heart what they s-say?" She asked quietly as she walked to Kakashi's right and leaned her elbows on the railing. She and he stared out at the blue sky.

"What do you mean?" Kakashi asked as he glanced at her. Cherry thought for a moment,

"Do you really b-believe them. . . when they say that y-you are old?" Kakashi chuckled deeply and noticed the Lady turned slightly red and had quickly hid her face in her hands,

"I-I'm s-sorry. . . I s-should not be asking such things. . . I'm very sorry. . ." she said quietly as she turned to leave, only to be caught by the hand. Her breath caught in her throat as she Kakashi let out a sigh,

"Don't feel bad," Kakashi mumbled as he pulled her back toward him. Cherry lowered her face and tried to turn away from him.

"I guess there's no use in denying the truth anymore." Kakashi said as he forced his fingers to release her soft hand,

"I have to except that I'm not exactly one to be thought of as 'young'. . . but. . ."

"Kakashi-kun?" Kakashi looked up to the Lady. She was smiling warmly at him with a slight blush on her face,

"Kakashi-kun is not old." she said as she shook her head to emphasize the point. Kakashi chuckled,

"Well, that's one opinion--"

"NO!" Kakashi nearly jumped out of his designer sandals.

"You are not old, Kakashi-kun!" Cried the red head as she popped up two fists on her hips,

"Do not ever say that again!" She said and tried to look menacing. Kakashi tried not to laugh as he patted her head,

"I am old." Kakashi said simply as he smiled down at the Lady. His eye caught hers and they stared, silver to gold, for a moment.

"Prove it." she whispered. Kakashi stared down at her; she looked up at him so sweetly, so full of compassion. He raised an eyebrow,

"Hmmn?" Cherry bit her lip and raised her hands to the edges of his mast, her cold fingers lightly brushing his flesh. Kakashi lifted his hand and held her fingers in place.

"Kakashi-kun, why do you wear that mask?" She asked quietly. Kakashi stared down at her, the sweet Lady who made his heart swell to phenomenal heights. He was left speechless and tears were brought to his eye. He was actually going to tell her.

"I. . . Because. . . Um. . . It's kind of embarrassing but. . . " he said with a blush hidden beneath the cloth,

"Because. . . I. . . sorta. . . kind of. . . maybe. . . look a small bit. . . like. . . My father." He knew with one flutter of her lashes that she understood. His father had killed himself and made him witness, what child would want to look like a man such as that? She smiled fondly up at him and he released her fingers.

0o

"Hey guys!" Naruto exclaimed. Sakura and Sasuke looked up from their tea expectantly,

"Do ya think I could convince Master Kakashi to take us out for Ramen-- you know, as a fitting goodbye for Kawaii-sensei!?" Naruto asked with a grin. Sakura shrugged,

"Go ask him." She said as she rubbed the dark circles under her eyes, still trying to wake up fully.

Naruto skipped to the door and, for some reason, he paused and only pulled it only open a crack. He didn't know why he hadn't thrown it open as he usually would, but something made his movements slow. He stared out the door, completely serious as his eyes landed upon the two adults. Something throbbed in his large heart, it was caused by something Master Kakashi had said. . .

"_You'll understand this when you're older, Naruto. Sometimes you. . . just have to do what's best for someone who's important to you. . . Even if the result isn't pleasant to you. After all, you want to be Hokage, right?" _Naruto's heart sank. What could he do? What was best for Kawaii-sensei?

With painful slowness, the lady's soft fingers separated the cloth from his skin. Kakashi closed his eyes as the mask slid down his face and hung loosely around his neck. All around him was silent,

"Kakashi-kun. . .?" Kakashi opened his eyes and found the Lady smiling brilliantly up at him,

"I never knew your father; but I see _absolutely_ no resemblance to a man with no honour." She said as she gingerly touched the pale flesh. Kakashi let tears fall from his eyes and a breathy sigh from his lips as she ran her fingers across his high cheekbones, down his strong jaw, across his chin, even along his long, thin nose. Her long fingers brushed up against his lips.

"Kawaii-chan. . ." he mumbled onto her fingers as he lifted a hand to her soft cheek.

Naruto stood there in silence for a moment. There was no '#1 hyperactive knucklehead' there. He raised a hand to his heart. He hadn't been shocked to see Kakashi's face, but he had to do what was best for the Lady. He would prove that he had what it would take to be Hokage.

". . .Master. . . Kakashi. . .?" Naruto asked, trying to sound happy, as he slid open the door slowly. Kakashi's mask went back up in half of a second.

"Yes?" Kakashi asked with surprising patience. Naruto scuffed the beige carpet with his bare foot as he stuffed his hands in his pockets,

"Uh. . . ah. . . I was wondering if we could go out for Ramen. . . You know, for our last meal with Kawaii-sensei?" Naruto asked, trying not to look directly at either sensei. Kakashi chuckled,

"Sure, why not." he said with a shrug.

Naruto faked a grin,

"That's great Master Kakashi!" He squeaked with false enthusiasm,

"Then, if we'll be leaving early, you better start to get packing!" Naruto said as he grabbed Cherry's hand and skipped with her back to inside. Kakashi stood frozen for a moment. What had just happened?

While deep in his thoughts, he heard the screen door slide partially open. He turned and found the blonde, blue-eyed ninja quietly looking out to him.

"Anything I can do for you?" Kakashi asked.

"I'm sorry, Master Kakashi. . ." Naruto mumbled as he slid the door close and left Kakashi to himself.

Cherry stared around the room she had become so accustomed to. Everything, although mismatched and old, made her smile. Cherry walked over to the large window, threw open the dusty curtains, unlatched the glass, and swung the large windows open. Smiling and satisfied, she began to pack, and while she did, she began to do something she hadn't done in a long, long time.

She began to sing.

Naruto sat down with a thump and hit his head hard on the wood table. Sakura looked up from her tea,

"What's wrong, Naruto?" Naruto banged his head again, making the mugs of tea (of course Kakashi didn't have teacups, they're not manly!) shake.

"Naruto?"

Thump.

"Naruto, what's wrong?"

Thump. Thump.

"C'mon, Naruto!"

Thump. Thump. Thump."

Sasuke's ears twitched and he looked about for the source of whatever he was hearing.

"What's wrong, Sasuke-kun?" Sakura asked. Sasuke stood without a word and circled the room and stopped and stared down the hall,

"I hear something strange." He said dully.

Thump

"What? Naruto hitting his head on the table? Of course. I can hear that too." Sakura said as she sipped her scorching tea again.

Sasuke rolled his eyes,

"And you call him dense," he mumbled coarsely under his breath as he began down the hall,

"No, I hear something _else_."

"C'mon, Naruto!" Sakura said as she stood and followed the emo.

Thump.

The melody twittered higher and higher and gracefully weaved a tapestry of a song. They stood wide-eyed at the door as they watched the woman carefully and slowly dance around the room, cleaning this and that, every once in awhile heading to the window and greeting some birds that happened to perch out on the ledge.

Sakura turned to the goth, wide-eyed,

"I-- wow! Whatever Kakashi said to her really must've worked."

"Mn."

0o

Naruto looked up from where he had been slouching for the past-- well, however long it had been. He could see Sakura and Sasuke still attentively listening to the Lady at the ajar door. Kakashi still hadn't come inside, so Naruto wandered absentmindedly to the door and slid it open. A pair of sandaled feet hung in front of his face, slowly rising and dropping. Something dripped onto his forehead and he looked up to see what his crazy sensei was doing.

"Master Kakashi?" Naruto called quietly. He heard a grunt from above and another drop hit his forehead. Naruto raised his hand, wiped the drop from his forehead and held it at eye level. Blood.

"Master Kakashi!?" Naruto called as he stepped out further onto the balcony and stared up at the sensei. Kakashi hung from the sharp gutter by one bloody finger, the other arm behind his back. He pulled himself up by the finger again and grunted as the gutter sliced deeper into his flesh.

"Master Kakashi!" Naruto squeaked, "What the heck are you doin'!?" The older man groaned,

"Chin-ups."

Naruto raised an eyebrow,

"Okaaaaaay. Why?"

"A great ninja once said 'An important rule, if not the most important, is to never show your emotions.' But. . . I just. . . Can't help myself. . ." yet another drop hit Naruto's forehead, but it was not blood which he saw, but tears.

"Master Kakashi?"

Kakashi took a sharp breath and released his grip and landed neatly on the balcony. He stared down indignantly at his finger and dismissed the blood and the pulsing muscle.

"Thank you, Naruto." Kakashi mumbled after a moment,

"I had forgotten my position. . . I had forgotten my mission." He ran a bloody hand through his hair, leaving a long, thin red streak among the silver spikes.

"Naruto, please tell Sakura, Sasuke and Ch-- Kawaii-chan that I won't be coming in for awhile. I need some time to think." Naruto bowed,

"Yes, Master Kakashi." he said as he turned.

"Oh, and Naruto?" Naruto turned,

"Yeah, Master Kakashi?"

"Thanks. You really showed the attributes of a true Hokage."

0o

Thanks so much for reading. The last part was a bit tedious to write, but it was necessary. So, I'm thinking' there's gonna be about two or three more chapters! I will hopefully get the next one done this weekend! Thanks to all of my readers and my reviewers!

Mysteria Pearl


	8. Chapter 8

Sorry this might've taken awhile, but I've been under the weather and totally out of it. Since my sanity is just now returning, here's the next chapter

Disclaimer: If you haven't figured out by now, I do NOT own anything related to Naruto other then my OC's and this plotline.

I'd also like to take this time and thank all of my reviewers and readers! You're the best!

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Kakashi stuffed his hands in his pockets and gazed off into the sky as the five continued down the fairly quiet streets of Konoha. They were already on their way to the Hokage's tower.

The thought had crossed his mind that he probably looked completely ridiculous carrying three _large_ bright pink bags stuffed with clothes down the street. For some reason he got a really eerie suspicion that he was being watched by fangirls everywhere that would write millions of fanfictions about him carrying said bags. Kakashi cringed at the thought but somehow managed to shake it off.

He could feel his now bandaged hand throbbing as they rounded another corner and he could see the blonde Hokage, Shizune, and five or six personal servants waiting by the front steps. Tsunade was downing a rather large bottle of sake while Shizune was fussing about and her pig was running in circles around the blonde woman's sandaled feet.

He slowed a bit and glanced at the other four with him. Sasuke looked like the walking dead as usual. Sakura was talking animatedly to Cherry about something she had read in some magazine or something while the Lady nodded politely and answered questions carefully. Kakashi looked back at Naruto. He was walking slowly, a few paces behind the rest, with his hands in his pockets and looked uncharacteristically serious. He was staring somewhere off to his left with a blank look on his face and a dull look in his eyes. Kakashi could recognize the expression.

_Kakashi remembered fondly when he had ventured back into the apartment due to Naruto's constant nagging about his bloody hand. He had found the redhead speaking slowly to the emo-boy and the pink hair Chunin. The Lady flushed and rose as he approached, offering a large smile to his weary heart. Sakura had fussed over his hand, but the masked Jounin barely noticed; he couldn't tear his mismatched eyes away from the Lady. Cherry could barely take the sight of blood and almost had to be sick. '_A newly uncovered fear,' Kakashi thought fondly as he gazed warmly at the shy woman.

He hardly registered the shouts or what happened after the Hokage and her personal maids. What he could remember was a sinking feeling as The Hokage Tsunade warmly greeted the Lady and complimented the beautiful purple dress she was wearing.

Purple dress. . . 'Such a beautiful dress' Kakashi had said over and over to himself as he tried not to stare. He chuckled fondly in his mind as he reminisced at her face when he had given it to her.

_He had brought her out to the balcony and had gently tied his Leaf headband over her eyes and told her to wait for a second. He had 'poofed' away and, seconds later, had re-materialized in front of her with the package in his hands. He had taken her long, scarred finger in his warm ones and had pushed the box into her palms. He watched the expression on her face before he removed the blindfold. Her eyebrows were furrowed and a cute pout was on her lips-- those lips. He barely managed to swallow and shove down any hopes of kissing her speechless, so to speak of course. _

_He had released the package and carefully pulled off the makeshift blindfold. The Lady had stared down in awe at the gold insignia of the expensive dress company and immediately her eyes lit up. With great eagerness and much excitement, she pulled the cover of the box and delicately unfolded the tissue paper and froze at the sight of the purple material. With shaking hands, she pulled the dress out of the package and stared at it, her glossy lips slightly apart and Kakashi licked his dry lips_.

_She had looked up at him with tears on her long eyelashes and a blush lightly spread on her gently sloping cheekbones. With small fragments of thanks, she broke into tears and he softly pulled her into his warm embrace. He could hear her gasp quietly as he wrapped his strong arms protectively around her and she hugged the dress between them as she cried her tears of thanks into his vest,_

"_This is just a gift I bought for you to remember me by." Kakashi mumbled into her smooth hair._

_Once her tears had ceased, the Lady pulled back and smiled up at him,_

"_Kakashi-kun, it is not just by the things you have bought me that I will remember you by, but the things you've given me. You have given me back by voice and a reason to speak-- hope." She gazed up tearfully at him and laid a hand gently on his face,_

"_And. . . And that is something I can never thank you enough for, Kakashi-kun. . ." She had whispered onto his mask._

Kakashi sighed inwardly as he grunted a salute to the Hokage and barely noticed as Sakura went into detail about the mission.

_The mission. That's exactly how it had started out. As a normal mission for a less-than-normal-Jounin and his less-than-normal-students to take care of a less-than-normal-Lady. Who he had fallen absolutely spiky head over sandals for. Sakura had offered to help the Lady on with it and the two had disappeared into the bathroom for what seemed like forever. Kakashi had managed to keep Naruto out of his mask collection for the most part, but Naruto had stolen one of his favourite orange ones. He had been distracted, though, by a light tap on the shoulder. He turned and was caught completely stunned by a timid creature with her long red strands in curls. She smiled up at him cheerfully and he affectionately patted her head._

The time had flown by far too quickly for Kakashi's taste. It seemed like they had all just met seconds before, and already, The Lady Hokage was tearing the lovely creature out of his grasp, like a hawk snatching up an innocent bird. That was an over-dramatization, Kakashi knew, but it almost seemed real in his mind.

The sunset-haired Lady turned to the group and first approached Sasuke. She gently hugged him and pulled away in a small bow. A blush could be seen on the adolescent boy's face as he avoided eye contact and grunted a cold good-bye. Then the Lady went next to Naruto and kissed the blonde fox boy affectionately on the forehead as Lady Tsunade had done once and also received a blush from the teenager. Kakashi slowly backed up about four feet as she went to Sakura and bid the younger girl goodbye with tears and a hug. They promised to stay in contact and the Lady agreed to help tutor the girl if Sakura were ever in need of help.

Then the Lady turned to him. Kakashi felt his mind and heart stop as she looked up at him with confusion as he bowed deeply and backed up further. Kakashi had thought correctly when he guessed that the Lady was too polite to go against common manners. When someone would back away from you, it would be quite improper to pursue for an embrace.

The lady lowered her eyes to the floor and bowed. Kakashi knew that look as well. . .

_It was the same look she had had as she left the apartment. When they reached the door, Naruto and the gang clamoring down the stairs, she paused for a moment and stared into the place that she had become so fond of. Kakashi hug back and the top of the stairs and watched as she breathed in the scent. She took one last lingering look and shut the door. _

As the Lady turned to leave, Kakashi found his feet moving without consulting his brain. Kakashi was caught between a choice in a bad place. He could either dishonor all of Konoha and betray his mission or he could hurt her heart. He fought his tears as he slipped a kunai out from his vest pocket and commanded his legs one final time to stop. The Lady heard him slowly approaching her from behind and turned hopefully.

And then the man stopped abruptly and lowered his face. The blonde Hokage beckoned the Lady to come with her and Shizune took Cherry by the hand and led her away.

"Hey! C'mon, Sakura-chan! Let's go get some ramen!"

"We just GOT ramen, idiot."

"Shut up, Sasuke!"

"Make me."

"Naruto, stop bugging Sasuke!"

"AWWW Sakura-chan, Sasuke started it!!"

The fighting faded into the distance as the three feuding Chunin headed away, probably to get more ramen. Kakashi could feel a drop of rain land in his spiky mane. Another drop followed and another, until it was pouring. He stood in the torrents of rain, tears and rain dripping down his face.

He smiled sadly up at the Hokage's tower and winced as he fingered the kunai that that lodged deep in his thigh up to the handle. With a flick of the wrist, he pulled the long blade out and dropped it on the ground; he didn't really care anymore who found it or what they could do with it.

The man limped back to the apartment in a surreal state. Nothing seemed to be the way it was; everything had taken on a dead air. He passed the hospital where he had first seen her, but not a single flow was un-withered. The building seemed gray and lifeless although he could see there were plenty of people working in the lit windows. He passed the black memorial stone, the words un-readable in the rain. He touched the cold stone gently with great respect as he looked about him. The trees seemed dried and sucked of all life, no life rustled in the bushes and not a single bird sounded in the trees. He continued to hobble down the road and passed the ramen stand where they had eaten but a half-hour earlier. He smiled sadly as he remembered how shocked Naruto had been when he heard that it was the Lady's first time eating ramen, and how the blonde ninja had actually paid for it out of his own frog-coin pouch.

Now, not a single light flickered from the stand or the apartments above it, nor the adjacent housings. Thunder cracked as he continued down the completely silent lane. There were no barking or meowing strays and no children ran about in the rain as they usually would. No parents scolding, no siblings scoffing at one another, nothing.

Kakashi heavily made his way up the stairs to his apartment. He could tell before he had even reached the stairs that Sakura, Sasuke and Naruto had already come, gotten their things, and had gone long before. He lazily unlocked the door and sauntered though the door. He threw his vest down on the table. . . The table where the Lady had sat. Kakashi shook the thoughts out of his head. He had done the right thing, right? He tried to convince himself so as he headed to the kitchen something to eat. He heaved open the refrigerator door. He was left staring at food he had no idea how to make. His eyes glazed over the things he had convinced his students to buy. He would probably never get to make them-- 'hullo, what's this?' He pulled out a small box with a note on it.

"_Hi, Kakashi-kun. It's Cherry. I just wanted to thank you for all you've done for me. . . and I figured that you don't really know how to cook anything Sakura-chan bought for you. So I cooked you a little something for you to eat tonight and a something for breakfast tomorrow. Okay, now take this container and head to the stove." _Kakashi followed the directions and meekly headed to the old oven.

"_On the stove there's a pan on the front burner. Turn the little dial on the stove to the right and wait for the gas to light." _Kakashi did as it was written,

"_Good, now put all of the food in this box into the pan and stir it around for about three minutes. Then it will be done and ready to eat. Oh, and don't forget to drink your milk, okay Kakashi-kun? See you soon, Kawaii Cherry." _Kakashi smiled fondly down at the note as he stuck it up to the cabinet. . . The same cupboard that the Lady so fond to his heart had failed at getting the mugs and he had helped her. He pulled out a wooden spoon to stir the food with and had paused when he realized it was the one and only wood spoon he owned; the same spoon the Lady had stirred the cocoa with.

He mechanically made and downed the food with rote and continued on towards his room. Maybe a long shower would do him good, he figured. As he passed the balcony, he fondly touched the door's handle and gazed out into the rain, wishing that the Lady were still there. He continued on.

Kakashi walked into his bathroom and looked about. Everything was so. . . so _clean._ He removed his clothes, mask and headband, stepped into the shower and turned on the hot water. He tried to make his throbbing muscles relax as the scorching water touched his tender skin. He carefully ran a cloth over the wound on his thigh. He could feet it was deep- it had hit the bone when he had jabbed in into his flesh. IT had been bleeding non-stop since the Lady left, and he knew that any more blood loss would do him in. He looked about for his bottle of shampoo and smiled to himself as he found his shower also neat and tidy. Even his unruly silver hair had been cleaned from the drain. The bottles were all neatly tucked in their respective corners and all the old, used-up ones had been dispensed with. He ran his sudsy hands through his thick hair and his body tingled as he remembered what it felt like when she had touched him fondly. . . when she had laid a hand on his head, his face. . . when she had touched his heart.

He vaguely remembered a song that a man he was a mission to protect sang. The man was from across the great sea; David Bedingfield if he remembered correctly. Kakashi couldn't quite remember the words, but he could remember the title of the song being _'If you're not the one' _or something. He shook it off as his brain becoming dysfunctional with the loss of blood and turned the shower off. He got out, dried himself, and went about bandaging the deep wound in his leg.

He let out a sigh as he shut off the lights and slipped into his cozy bed. He shut his eyes, rolled over onto his left side, and breathed deeply, only to stop, mid-breath as his eyes flew open. They fluttered close again, though, as he recognized the Lady's shampoo on the pillow. He could almost smell her lip gloss too--

'Stop!' he shouted mentally to himself as his brows furrowed. This was the way it had to be. She was best off with Lady Tsunade. . . Not with an old, worthless Jounin. Still, he couldn't help but feel his heart drop as he hugged the fragrant pillow against his chest and let a few tears slip from his eyes as he longed for the woman he loved. . .

The woman he loved. . . more than anything.

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Well? What do you think? I love positive feedback! (well, duh, Pearl, who doesn't?)

THIS IS NOT THE FINAL CHAPTER! I REPEAT, THERE WILL BE MORE CHAPTERS

As of now, I'm not quite sure just how many more. One at the least, three at the most. It really depends how much sugar I have when I'm writing and if I get writer's block or not. This chapter, I wrote in one sitting of about an hour or so. Not bad, eh? Anyhoo, I'm hoping to get the last few chapters started. I'm thinking maybe an even ten would be best; after all, I need to round up all loose ends and tie them up (Though, in this one, there's not too many)

I may hold on, though, on the last chapter, because, what's the point of an ending without anticipation and a buncha fans with pitchforks coming after me if I don't post it soon? Funny thing, my fried read this and was immediately almost literally strangling me, asking me, "Will they EVER kiss!? Don't let them die or something! PLEAAAASE DOOON'T!" No need to fear, though, I'm not a completely evil writer, just a semi-annoying one. XD

Well, looking forward to a couple of reviews. If not, that's okeydokey. But at the end, I'd love to hear from you guys!

Mysteria Pearl


	9. Chapter 9

**Hello! Thanks to all of you who are reading my fanfic! Thank you to all of my reviewers! Now it's time for Clarification! Whoo!**

**I know a lot of people have been going "Cherry Kawaii!? What kind of a dork can't come up with a more original name!?" So, I decided it's time to tell all. It's not just one of those names where you open the phonebook and point to one. Nor is it a corny thing that I came up with randomly. Actually, I put a whole lot of thought into it, if you can believe that or not.**

**The concept started with her look. Red hair, red-gold eyes. I wanted her name to be delicate and having to do with a lighter version of red. Pink. What's pink? A Cherry blossom. And then my mind went into overload and it pulled up "Sakura" and for like two seconds, I was thrilled with the name… until I realized that there's… already a character named Sakura in Naruto… so, I settled on Cherry. She's not supposed to be normally named; Kakashi noticed that in the first chapter but dismissed it [because it's not his business to judge a client. She hasn't exactly been in public for awhile (like since she was itsy-bitsy). But she's in no way a Mary-Sue. In fact, she's the kind who tends to be ignored. (ESPECIALLY by those of the opposite gender.) **

**Her last name. . . I've gotten loads of feedback to it like "Cherry Kawaii, what a retarded name." and some "What a pretty name!" but now I'll explain the family name. Yes, its going to get a bit geeky in here. Well, a character from a certain show has the name "Shizuka Kawaii." (I'm sure with enough thought and searching, you can figure out where it came from) and she is such a sweet character. Her character really inspired me so it's a bit of a dedication (of some sort) to Shizuka Kawaii.**

**So there's my LONG explanation. Now, enjoy the story.**

**Disclaimer: I don't have a dream of owning Naruto. You got it. Only things that belong to me are the plot and Cherry Kawaii. Yepperdepper!**

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Kakashi woke in a cold sweat in a panic. He ran to the bathroom for the fifth time that night and vomited. His eyes wide and his breath short, he looked at himself in the mirror. His flesh looked dull. He stumbled to the kitchen to get a bottle of water but froze as his gaze landed on the note still laying on the table where he had left it. He picked it up and stared at it. The swirly handwriting made him feel like rolfing again. He missed her. Kakashi pulled a bottle of water out of the fridge and brought the note and his beverage out to the balcony. With great pain in his thigh, he managed to slide down on to the floor. He breathed the night air in deeply. He hadn't bothered to put his mask on; besides, what was the point? He held up the note in the moonlight.

She was the one for him, there was no doubt about it. . . He wanted to love her. . . And he wanted her to love him.

He missed her.

More than anything.

But he would do what was best for her.

And never see her again-- never even look at her again…

Because she probably didn't love him.

But he loved her.

He cried.

0o

The Lady sat on her own balcony in her nightgown. She could vaguely hear the maids pounding on the barricaded door, but she didn't really take note of it. She stared out blankly into the moonlight and clutched the purple dress in her white hands as more teardrops spilled over onto it. She felt so hopeless, so, so lonely. She brought her knees up to her chest and sobbed quietly,

"Kakashi-kun. . ." She whispered over and over, whishing for him to appear. She could almost see his smiling face, so kind and tender. . . His eyes, although mismatched; strong. . . His hands, so gentle. She wanted to be with him. . . Forever.

He was perfect for her. . . Wasn't he? But if he was. . . Why did he refuse her embrace. . .? Why wouldn't he hold her and whisper caring words into her ear. Why didn't he snatch her up from the grip of the Hokage Tsunade? Why didn't he swoop in like a knight in shining armor and tear her away from them? She tried to calm her shivering to no avail and finally gave into to the rapid shaking. She furiously wiped her eyes-- she wouldn't-- couldn't make her love for Kakashi interfere… but…

She longed to be with him.

She desperately wished for his touch

All she wanted was to be in his embrace at that moment.

Just to hear him say her name-- just once

He didn't seem to love her

But she loved him.

She cried.

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Sasuke sat on the roof of his abode in silence. It was strange. Usually, he couldn't care less about such trivial things, but. . . something seemed wrong. He had felt it back when Team 7 had bid the Lady goodbye. He felt as if... as if he was actually going to _miss_ her, if you can even imagine it, a feeling he had hadn't experienced since his father and mother had. . .

But she wasn't dead, of course. It was _much_ different-- she was alive, but. . . Kakashi. . . Sasuke ran a hand through his hair. He had seen Kakashi stab himself; he doubted the others had. Even Lady Tsunade seemed oblivious.

But. . . Kakashi would feel the same way. . . The same way he had when. . . But. . . If his parents were still alive, and he wasn't allowed to see them ever again. . . Maybe that would be worse than their death.

He would have to do something quickly.

0o

Naruto sat in silence on his bed. He had done what he thought, at the time, was right. . . but. . . He had seen Kakashi's face as the Lady walked away. No amount of fake-feuding or arguments could erase that look. It was so full of despair. . . almost like the look he had back when. . .

He sat there wondering for awhile; just letting his thoughts wander. 'What if' questions popped into his head and his thoughts began to travel to his parents, his comrades, his loved ones. What if somebody out of the blue told him he couldn't ever see one of them again?

He stared out his window to the seemingly still world and came to a conclusion.

He had to do something and fast.

0o

Sakura sat brushing out her shoulder-length pink locks. She smiled fondly as she pulled a long red hair out from her brush and laid it on her vanity. She hadn't even known the sensei for long, but for some reason, she missed her terribly.

She sighed as she plopped down onto her bed. If she felt that badly, surely Kakashi-sensei would be feeling absolutely _sluggish._ She glanced at the clock; it was only half-past midnight, but she felt like she had been pondering two certain sensei for much longer.

She sat up and stretched. Her eyes automatically wandered to the picture frame that sat next to her bed. It held the precious picture of her team and their sensei. Sakura picked up the picture. Something twisted in her gut.

'Poor guys' she thought as she smiled sadly at the picture.

'They've all been through so much… and they can still smile… well, Sasuke's smile is more of a smirk…a very cute smirk… but all of them… I couldn't handle it… I think it's a horrible day when I wake up an hour late… or when my mom sleeps in so long, I don't get any breakfast… but their loved ones… they'll _**never **_wake up… ever again…' Sakura sighed and set the frame back down on her side table. She plopped down on her bet and stared up at her ceiling.

He thoughts somehow drifted to her masked teacher. He had been happy. So, so happy while the Lady was around. Maybe he thought that no one could notice, but Sakura did. The way he smiled, the way he gazed lovingly at her-- she had never seen him like that before. And then… she had noticed when he had sunk the blade into his thigh. Sakura shivered at the very thought. She had hoped the others wouldn't notice, so she loudly began arguing with the others to cover it up.

She grabbed a kunai from her nightstand and pricked her finger on the end just to see what it felt like-- not the smartest idea. She watched as a red dot on her finger began to form. It stung. Not like a paper cut, either, worse. She cringed at the thought of stabbing herself-- she had to mentally shut her brain down to stop the horrible thought.

Did Kakashi-sensei really care about her well-being that much?

Yes.

Was he doing what was really good for her?

Oh, heck no.

Sakura sat up.

She needed to do something ASAP-- well, maybe in the morning, but ASAP in the morning!

0o

Tsunade rolled uncomfortably in her bed. She could still hear the maids attending to the Lady on the floor beneath her. They had somehow finally managed to break down the door and bring her inside, but she still wouldn't cooperate.

'Silly child' She thought as she rolled onto her right side.

She fell still as her gaze landed on a photograph. Her throat tightened and her eyes and nose began to sting,

'Darn these-- these useless emotions! They won't get me anywhere. They only bring more heartache!' She thought rolled over again so that she wouldn't have to look into the faces in the photograph,

"I'm doing them both good… It's best this way…" She mumbled as she tried to stop her tears,

"I'm saving them from more pain… it's best…" her voice trailed off in the darkness as she sat up sharply, grabbed the picture and held it to her chest,

"Dan… Nawaki... I have to be strong… so that… the same thing that ha-happened to m-me… doesn't happen to… to… them…" She managed to whisper through her tears.

0o 0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

"Um… excuse me… but by any chance is Lady Tsunade available?… I would really like to speak to her."

Shizune looked up from the Hokage's late paperwork,

"Oh, hi Sakura. Why don't you go and wait over there-- I'll call you when she's out of the council meeting."

Sakura smiled,

"Thank you." she said politely as she turned and found who else but Mr. Gothic-Chicken-Butt himself.

"SASUKE-KUN!!!" Sakura screeched and she skipped over to him (meanwhile, Gothie was trying to hide the teen horoscope he had been reading)

"Oi, don't be so loud, Sakura. You're so annoying." He grumbled. Sakura wrinkled her nose as she sat down (as close as she could) to him when--

"HEY, LADY! I NEED TO HAVE A CHAT WITH GRANNY TSUNADE RIGHT NOW!" A certain #1 Hyperactive Knucklehead Ninja shouted as he burst through the doors… only to be smacked in the face when he realized t was a _swinging_ door. The blonde fox boy charged up to the front desk and slammed his hands down,

"HEY! I REALLY, REALLY NEED TO TALK TO THE OLD--"

"Naruto!" Naruto spun around and grinned as he spotted his teammates,

"Hey guys! Whatcha doin' here!?" Sasuke rolled his eyes and scoffed about how Naruto was a moronic imbecile or something underneath his breath.

"Seems we all had the same idea." Sakura said,

"You two came to talk to Lady Tsunade about Cherry-sensei, right?" The two opposites nodded in agreement.

"It'll probably be awhile though; you know how those old representatives like to talk." Sasuke mumbled. Naruto whined, crossed his arms and plopped down on the ground with a pout on,

"She better not take too long…"

0o

Kakashi sat up and could hear every joint in his back and neck crack effortlessly. He grabbed his clock from where he had tossed it; it read 9:27. Unlike most believed, he was actually pretty used to getting up early. He liked to dawdle; he wasn't _completely_ lazy after all!

He limped to his bathroom and wearily stared at his reflection in the mirror. His eyes had bags large enough for Sakura and Cherry to go shopping with, he had a five o'clock shadow at 9:30 in the morning and he looked plain miserable. His eyes were bloodshot and his skin looked abnormally gray and spotty. He still felt sick from the last time he had woken and vomited-- that had been about an hour before.

He lazily brushed his teeth, took a quick shower, clothed himself, shaved, put his mask on, and tended for his wound. It was still bleeding. He dressed it and stumbled out to the kitchen to see if he could eat anything-- but even as he gazed at the stove or the fridge, it hit him again and he once again emptied his stomach in the nearest bathroom. It seemed that he would have to use a LOT of toothpaste-- and AJAX.

He wandered around the apartment aimlessly until there was a loud knock on the door. He pulled it open and faced the Jolly-Green-Giant and the Young Green Grasshopper grinning up at him,

"What?" He asked sharply.

"We are here to lighten your day and bring youthfulness and joy into your--"

SLAM. He turned to leave but could hear the two bug-eyed, beetle-haired, jumpsuit wearing ninja knocking again.

He sighed and pulled open the door.

"…home!" Lee finished with a grin.

"I'm in no mood for this." Kakashi said darkly. The Golly-Boy-Wonder and Mr. Chipper-Pants just replied with a smile.

"Kakashi, my archrival, Lee and I are here to retrieve your youthfulness to wherever it has fled to!"

"Yes, Kakashi-sensei! We will go to the ends of the earth to bring back that which is lost to you!"

"Lee! That was wonderful!

"Anything to make you proud, Gai-sensei!"

"LEE!"

"GAI!"

Rainbows, sparkles, waves on the beach, you know the drill as the bug-eyed, spandex-clad pair embraced enthusiastically.

Kakashi slowly shut the door.

Once this disco lights had recovered, the green pair turned to one another,

"Gai-sensei, Kakashi-sensei is certainly un-youthful!"

"Yes he is, Lee. Youthfulness is the one thing I can beat him in!"

"We must see Lady Tsunade and let her know his youthfulness has been stolen!"

"That we must, Lee! Wonderful idea!"

"Oh Gai-sensei!"

"Lee!"

"Gai-sensei!"

You get the picture.

Kakashi sauntered back to the sitting room area and sank down near the table. He resolved to get his mind back on track as soon as he could.

He just needed to go back to the way things were before… Kakashi froze. How _had_ it been before? What had he usually done. Train? Nah, too tired. Go for a walk to the memorial? No, too depressing. Meet with his team? Nah, he had told them the day before that they could have an off day.

What else was there? He looked about the room and his eyes fell on the locked bookcase with the neon orange books inside. He dragged himself to his feet and stumbled over to the shelf. He unlocked the spin-lock and pulled out the newest. He flopped down at the table and opened the book. Images and words that once excited him and brought him momentary happiness only brought him disgust.

What's happened? He wondered to himself,

These things used to keep me occupied for hours… He returned the book to it's place and for once, didn't bother locking the case.

Everything was so… quiet. It wasn't the quiet he despised, though. He could quite easily bear it; it was the lack of company that he detested. Whoever had made up "Three is a team" was almost right; two or five could be a team quite as easily as three-- in comparison to Team 7, ten people could probably work easier.

A team… two… Kakashi smiled fondly off into outer space and finally made up his mind.

He loved her.

And he was going to make it known to every living thing.

…

Including the Lady herself.

0o

"Heeeeeeeeeello, Shizune! My young companion, Lee, and I are here to speak to the Hokage about returning Kakashi's youthfulness!" Shizune looked up from her deskwork at the two green ninja. What had she DONE to deserve this? First it was the Emo, then it was that pink haired girl with the big forehead, then the hyperactive blonde fox, and now THIS!?

"You can go and wait over with the others-- I'll tell you when she's out of her meeting." She said with a twitch as she motioned over to Team 7. Gai and Lee leaped over to where the others were waiting and struck a pose,

"Hello, all of you wonderful youth! I can see you're just BRIMMING with the power of youth! Have you also come to set my dear rival's soul flying; to return his youth!?"

Sakura looked up from her magazine on how to apply blush correctly without looking like a rag doll. Chicken butt-- um, Sasuke paid them no heed and just relocated over to the window where he watched the squirrels intently. Naruto was sleeping upside down on a random chair on the other wall.

"Um… yeah... I guess so… we're here to talk to Lady Tsunade about letting Kawaii-sensei return to Kakashi-sensei--" Sakura was cut off as Lee jumped in front of her and snatched up her hand,

"Oh! Sakura! You are truly SO youthful! What a noble quest the radiant flower of Konoha brings!!!"

"Um… yeah--" She was cut off, though, as the chakra-locked and enforced swinging door opened and the blonde Hokage appeared with a scowl and dark circles under her eyes.

"Okay, everyone, Lady Tsunade's out of her meeting, now if you'll form a neat and orderly line--"

WHOOM! Shizune blinked as the ninja all immediately rushed through the swinging door. Naruto had fallen off of his char and had tripped over three others and somehow managed to knock over two pictures that had been hanging on the wall, Rock Lee and Gai and Skipped merrily and quickly through the doors, somehow accidentally knocking over a vase full of flowers and Sasuke just knocked over a rack of magazines because he was bored.

Shizune hit her head on the desk,

"I should really take my vacation days before this job kills me. Really, If I wasn't indebted to the Hokage, I would totally quit." She mumbled defeatedly to herself.

0o

"My dear Hokage, Lee and I are here to request that you return Kakashi's precious flower to her immediately!"

"Gai-sensei is correct! You are very much taking away Kakashi-sensei's youthfulness, Lady Tsunade Hokage!"

"Yeah, Grandma Tsunade! Master Kakashi's totally depressed! You really need to let Kawaii-sensei come back!"

"… Um, excuse me… what Naruto means is that… um… Team 7 would very much appreciate if we could see Kawaii-chan and allow Kakashi to maybe… visit with her or something… just so that he can feel better--"

"What lovely words you speak, Sakura-chan! You are truly an inspiration! Lady Tsunade, you must listen to what the lovely flower of Konoha says and please allow us to return Kawaii-chan to Kakashi-sensei"

"I hate to admit it… and I really hate to admit it… but they're right, Hokage. Kakashi-sensei's suffering big time."

"Wow! Sasuke-kuuun, you're so kind and thoughtful!"

"And you, Sakura-chan, are so considerate for coming down here!"

Lady Tsunade rubbed her temples. This was going to be a LONG day.

0o

Shizune looked up from her work to find a pretty sick looking Kakashi standing at the desk,

"You don't look well, Kakashi-sensei. Would you like someone to take a look at you?"

Kakashi grunted,  
"I'm here to speak to Tsunade."

Shizune sighed,  
"So is everyone else in the world. She's currently in a kind of meeting, would you mind sitting down--"

"No," Kakashi said, his face emotionless. A coldness was in his eye that the girl had never seen before,  
"I'm going to speak with Tsunade now." Shizune's eyes grew wide as the silver haired man walked to the swinging door.

"Um-- excuse me, Kakashi-sensei, you can't do that! You're not supposed to interrupt the Hokage while she's in a meeting! Besides, that's a chakra-enforced door that opens from the inside and the only key who has a key is--"

Kakashi extended an arm and in the blink of an eye, completely obliterated the door with what looked like a light punch. Without another word, the masked Jounin walked away into the dimly lit hallway.

"…Lady Tsunade…" Shizune finished weakly with a finger held up in the air

0o

"Oh Sakura-chan! Yu speak with such grace! It is so noble of such a youthful flower to come for such a worthy cause!"

"Hey! Sasuke and I are here too!"

"Yes, Naruto, Sasuke, you are also splendid nin--"

Clack!

All eyes turned to the silver haired Jounin in the doorway. With a kind of limping dignity, he made his way to the desk of the Hokage and stood before her. He looked a mess. His hair looked limp (he hadn't bothered to put gel in it), his eye looked weak and red and his skin almost resembled a speckled gray.

Tsunade turned away from him in her rolling chair. She faced the window behind her desk and didn't say anything for a moment. The "Dandy Spandy-men", forehead, Chicken-butt hair, and blonde fox lad all backed away from the desk and also remained speechless.

"Well." The Lady said finally, "What are you here for?" She already knew his answer but wanted him to say it anyway.

Kakashi was silent. Was all of this trouble worth it? What would really happen? This was no fairytale, no story. It was real and unpredictable. What if the Lady didn't feel the same emotions? What if the Lady wouldn't speak to him? What if the Hokage would refuse his request? What would he do if she did? How could he live without her-- he couldn't even dream of it.

"I am here for the Lady." He said simply.

Tsunade paused,  
"What about her?"

What about her? Nothing; everything.

"I need to see her."

"… No, Kakashi. I'm afraid you cannot see her."

"Tsunade, you don't understa--"

"No!" the woman shouted and then she took a shaky breath followed by a long silence,

"I understand perfectly well. She is simply a client. You were the Jounin assigned to bring her out of her shell. That's all. Your mission was a success. It's over, Kakashi."

He said nothing for awhile and finally smiled sadly,

"But… she's no longer a client… and, Lady Tsunade… I have feelings--"

"Get out of my sight." She said just above a whisper.

"But--"

"Leave. Now."

Kakashi couldn't move. He felt his heart shatter in his chest and felt all of his hope sink down to his feet and out of his sandals. Something like a heavy blanket covered his mind and he felt… he could barely describe it…

Broken

**0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o**

**So? Totally depressing? Don't worry, my friends! Hope is on the way! WHOO! Sorry it was a bit long, but I had to fill all of that stuff in there. I had SO major writer's block on a lot of parts here; here is where everything is sewn together; everyone's feelings and actions are being brought together and I need it to be just right.**

**I'd really appreciate to hear from you, even if you've already reviewed ****J**** Thank you for patient with my procrastination-ness and such! I'm hoping to get the next chapter out on… I dunno, Thursday or Friday! Hopefully by the weekend!**

**Thank you all once again!**

**MP**


	10. Chapter 10

**Hiya! It's MP again with chappie 10! I hope you've liked it! I've already decided to make a sequel! Whoo!**

**Disclaimer: Duh, I don't own it. I just make them cry and scream and laugh and… whatever else I can think of at the same time.**

**I AM MAKING A SEQUEL, just letting you know ahead of time so you're not too depressed! WHOO!**

**Get a tissue box; it's last-chapter time!**

**0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o**

"Make your leave," Lady Tsunade said coldly with her back still to the Jounin..

She could feel the man's heart drop as he turned to leave. His slow, sandaled footsteps echoed in the silence. He stopped, though, halfway to the door and smirked,

"Have you really forgotten?" His calm voice asked, shattering the silence.

"What?" The older woman asked.

"Have you forgotten so easily that of the ones you loved? Your _own _beloved? Have you forgotten Dan?" Kakashi asked over his shoulder. The Hokage said nothing.

"Forgotten everything you lived another day for, Tsunade? What was it was like to touch the one who understood the emotions of your heart? Can you remember?" he took a shaky breath, "How _did_ feel to hold their hand, to hold them in your arms. . . Have you _truly_ forgotten the pain felt-- and have felt-- since his death? Do you recall your single wish, that he would live?" Kakashi sighed and stuffed his gloved hands in his pockets,

"Well, I for one haven't forgotten. Don't you understand, Lady Tsunade? Without her. . . _I'll _die. What can I do to convince you?" The woman stayed silent

"I would give anything to see her, to hold her in my arms once again!" Kakashi cried softly in agony. He put his hand over his heart,  
"I would give up sunshine, the rain, Icha Icha, my arms and legs-- _anything_ to be with her. The same as you would give to be with _them_."

Kakashi stood in silence for a few moments,  
"She means everything to me, Lady Tsunade. I want. . . I want to spend the rest of my days with her. Every moment without her is like perpetual suffering-- unending. Hokage. . . she is _more_ then a comrade to me. She. . . she _is_ my sun. To me, she's everything wonderful wrapped up into a dainty human being-- and asking me not to be with her is like. . . like asking me not to breathe."

In Tsunade's own mind, his voice rang long after he had spoken. Lady Tsunade still said nothing.

Kakashi's shoulders fell. He had decided,  
"As of this moment, Lady Tsunade, you have taken away my honour. . . and thus. . . you are about to indirectly lead to the second suicide of the Hatake family." He shrugged,

"But what's one lousy Jounin for personal gain?"

The woman was silent, as was the others in the room.

Kakashi chuckled,  
"Well, that's my peace. I take my leave, Lady Tsunade." Kakashi said as he continued for the door.

"Kakashi." The silver-haired Jounin paused with his hand on the sliding door.

The blonde Hokage took a shaky breath,  
"Don't. . . don't _ever_ accuse me of forgetting Dan. He. . . He was my entire life. . . My joy. To lose him. . . and my brother. . . was hard enough, but I still have Shizune. And. . ." She turned her eyes to the sky, "I still have a reason to live. . . to fulfill their dreams. . ." The woman sighed and turned in her chair to Shizune,

"Bring in Cherry Kawaii." Tsunade said softly.

Kakashi turned around slowly to face the woman-- he could barely believe his ears and his heart began to race as the young woman rushed out the door behind him.

The blonde woman put her elbows on the desk and laid her face in her hands,  
"I. . . I _had_. . . forgotten what it was like to be able to see. . . and to touch. . . and even to hold the one I love. I will never again fill the lovely sensation of his arms around me. . . I never will. . . ever again. I. . . I only wanted to protect you. . ." The Hokage laid her face in her hands and let out a soft wail,  
"All I wanted was to protect her. . . From the same fate. . . that. . . that I suffer. . ." She took a deep breath and dabbed her eyes with a hanky.

"But I know now. . . that I cannot tear you two apart. . ." She chuckled sadly,  
"She is not happy here. To be honest, since she left your company, she has only cried. She has become _almost_ completely silent once more. She wouldn't speak to any of my servants or to me. She passed these last twenty-four hours locked out on the balcony. . . And the only thing she has said . . . Is your name. . ." She trailed off and seemed to gaze directly past Kakashi's right shoulder.

"Kakashi-san?" A timid voice asked. Kakashi turned, and he froze where he stood, his heart pounding in his chest. The Lady had dropped the affectionate suffix at the end of his name and had replaced it with a respectful one.

Her eyes were red and her lip wavered even as she stood there in front of him. Her usually bright eyes were clouded and her pale skin seemed gray. He let out a long held breath and took a step toward her. She backed away from him and shook her head, on the verge of tears again. She was shaking and tearful mess, but she was the most beautiful sight he had ever seen.

He took another cautious step towards her, and once again, she stepped back and focused on the floor. She tried with all her might to hold in the tears. It was like a slap to his mask, Kakashi thought, to see her helpless and tearful there. He could hear his heart thumping and the butterflies in his stomach doing a little jig.

"What's wrong?" He asked softly, his eyebrows knit. The Lady looked as if she was going to speak, but all that came out of her lips was barely above a whimper. Kakashi's heart tore from seeing her so hurt and could barely control himself not to began to tear up as well.

"Please. . ." He whispered desperately,  
"Please. . . Tell me what's wrong. . . Why are you crying?"

The lady took a shaky breath, calmed herself a bit more and lifted a delicate hand to her heart,  
"K-Kakashi-chan. . ." She took a shaky breath, "You. . . You hurt my heart. . ." She said, her voice breaking as she lowered her head. Kakashi could hear her teardrops hit the bamboo mats,

". . . when. . . when you refused my goodbye."

Kakashi felt his heart tear.

'_I caused this?'_ Kakashi thought in absolute horror as he turned to Tsunade,  
"Permission to speak feely, Lady Tsunade." He asked hurriedly. The lady set her chin on one palm,

"Sure. Whatever." Kakashi turned back to Cherry and slowly shook his head.

He lifted a hand to the blood-soaked bandage around the outside of his pant leg and let it fall to the ground. The Lady, as well as everyone else in the room stared at the continually bleeding gash.

"I had to _stab_ myself not to _run_ to you." He said, barely above a whisper

"Ooh. You should really wrap that before you die of blood loss." Tsunade said casually as a drip of blood hit the floor.

The red haired Lady's eyes grew wide as she stepped closer and gently touched the wound. Kakashi winced and fought down the urge to wipe away her resulting tears.

"Why?" She whispered as she picked up the blood cloth and gently dabbed the deep wound. The man gasped in pain as her touch hit the center of the wound and her eyes filled further with tears,

'Why. . . why did you do this?" she asked.

Kakashi thought over his answer and chose his words carefully,  
"For. . . for a sensei to hug a pupil upon final departure. . . well, that's. . . normal. But. . . for a female client to embrace her guardian. . . It just wouldn't be proper. . . And I didn't want the Anbu and the other sensei to think badly of you." The Lady fought tears again as Kakashi sighed,

"But. . . since the moment you left, you're the only thing I've thought of." Kakashi said softly as he took her hand. She let out a sigh and her tears finally got he best of her and spilled over her long eyelashes,

"I've missed you so much, Kakashi. . . kun." Kakashi smiled at the affectionate suffix.

"I can never tell you or show how sorry I am for refusing your embrace, but know that I am miserable without you." He said with a smile

"Kakashi. ." The lady whispered shyly through her tears, "When you left. . . That feeling that I thought I'd lost. . . came back. When I lost my comrades, I never thought that anything could hurt more. . . But in this past day and night, I have never felt so horrible."

Kakashi's eyebrows knit again and his heart swelled. She stared up at him sweetly,  
"Kakashi-kun." she whispered. Kakashi let out a breath and couldn't breathe in again.

In a heartbeat, Kakashi swept her into his arms, wrapped his right arm around her shoulders and his left around the back of her neck. Cherry gasped as the man pulled her up against him. Such a rush of emotion swelled in her heart that she couldn't hold it in. She let out a soft cry and held onto him as tightly as she could.

Kakashi could feel her fingers clutch his vest,  
"Oh, Cherry. . ." he mumbled affectionately into her hair as he let his own tears fall into her hair. His breath caught in his throat as the Lady wept onto his chest. Kakashi chuckled warmly through his tears as he rocked the Lady back and forth in his arms. He whispered comforting words to her for awhile until her tears subsided.

The onlookers watched with great anticipation (also with tears in their eyes, except Sasuke because he's just too goth)

Kakashi pulled back from the trembling woman and set his hands on her waist. He looked her directly in the eyes. Neither Kakashi nor Cherry could tear their tearful gaze away from the other's.

"I. . ." Kakashi smiled; he was helpless to do otherwise. The woman gazed up at him so sweetly. He absentmindedly tucked a strand of hair behind her ear,  
"I… I have come to know you very well within the last few days…" he said softly, "You have come so very far from when I first met you."

The Lady shook her head,  
"It is not I, but you who deserves the credit. I would…" She blinked in astonishment, "I never would have spoken again if it wasn't for you, Kakashi."

"I don't know. . . this feeling is entirely new. . ." Kakashi chuckled deeply.

"There…" he paused hesitantly, "There are no written words, nor spoken ones that can convey the feelings I have for you." He said softly. The woman's eyes grew wide as she whispered his name.

"The truth is, I've never felt this way before. I want. . . I want to be near you." He could feel those blasted tears stinging the back of his eyes again and the Lady's breath became short.

"And… and I am… I'm so happy… whenever you're around." He smiled, although all the Lady could see was the twinkle in his eye,  
"When I'm with you. . . I feel so free."

The Lady shook her head with tears in her eyes,  
"Kakashi. . . I do not deserve such wonderful words. . ." She laughed sadly as her brows furrowed, "I am _nothing_ special, Kakashi."

Neither noticed the distance closing between their faces, but both the man and the woman's breath quickened.

"Do not ever say that. . ." Kakashi whispered, "You're sweet. . . and you're kind. . . You're beautiful. . . You're intelligent and. . ." Kakashi could feel his tears soak into his mask,  
"You're absolutely breathtaking."

The shy Lady's eyes grew wide in astonishment behind her tears,  
"I-- I have never been. . ." She broke off for a moment and succumbed to her sobs again, "I-- I have never, never. . . I have never been told that by-- by _anyone._"

Their faces were but a breath apart and the woman's face (as well as the man's) glowed red.

"Kakashi. . "

"Cherry. . ." He locked his eyes with hers. He felt as if his heart had been disconnected from his body and was soaring high above him.

"I love you."

The world seemed to stand still as her heart nearly burst, and with it, his also. With cold, shaking hands, she reached up and removed first the headband. It dropped and clattered on the floor, but neither cared. Her breath caught in her throat as her fingers paused on the cloth and she stared up into his kind, mismatched eyes.

"I love you too." She whispered as she slid the cloth down around his neck.

The man took her closer in his arms and drew his face close to hers. Never was there such a moment of torment-- such a wonderfully dizzying moment in either of their lives up to that point. His uncovered breath was warm on her glowing face; his handsome features smiling helplessly down at her with so _very _much fondness.

"Cherry. . ." he whispered tearfully onto her lips and then. . .

He kissed her breathless.

He touched his lips to hers delicately, beautifully. So wonderfully. Tears escaped both of their eyes and a gasp came from her as he gently pressed his soft lips against hers. Her heart melted and at the same time, flew. His mind went into lockdown and both were in perfect, untainted bliss. He held a hand at the back of her neck while the other arm was looped around her waist

Never before in all of humanity was there such a beautiful kiss.

He pulled away, just a bit, and smiled onto her lips, mismatched eyes locked with tearful golden ones.

Sakura dabbed her eyes while Naruto was crying like a blubbering idiot. Sasuke's face was quite red and Gai and Lee were about to bubble over with youthfulness. Shizune smiled happily from behind the Hokage. The Hokage herself looked on with a sort of lovely weariness that was also happiness at the same time.

Kakashi took the Lady's hand and stepped back just a bit. He glanced nervously to his team, his comrades and to the Hokage. His newly unmasked face felt a bit cold out in the open for so long.

He took a deep breath and turned his fond gaze back to the Lady,  
"Cherry… I… I realize now that my life meant nothing without you." She smiled shyly up at him.

He took another deep breath,  
"And… now, I can't live without you any longer. So… with my team, my comrades, and my elders…"

"Yeah, yeah, get on with it." Tsunade piped up from her desk and then added "Geeze, this kids are giving me wrinkles." under her breath.

"With them as my witnesses, please…" He painfully knelt down on his bloody knee and gazed up at the sweet Lady,  
"Will you marry me?"

The Lady's eyes began to tear up again and she began to shake as she smiled dazzlingly down at him,  
"Yes! Oh of course, Kakashi!"

And once again, the silver haired man pulled his new fiancé into his arms and kissed her as an enormous applause roared from their close friends and companions.

It would be the beginning of a new and beautiful life for both of them. And it would be a dream-- an unending one at that!

**0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o**

**Well!? How was it!? I really want to know! I'm kind of sad now that it's over; it's my longest published one! This is also the first chapter story that I've… uh… finished… heh… Anyhoo, I'm also doing some other stories**

**I AM MAKING A SEQUEL! YAY! And it's not going to be one of those retarded ones that you always think "It would have been better if they had just stopped." It's going to be awesome, I guarantee it!**

**PLEASE review! Thank you!**

**Mysteria Pearl, signing off (FOR NOW)!**


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